Bob Allen, the former CEO of Vermont Country Store, will lead the Direct Marketing Association while the organization searches for a full-time replacement for its president and CEO.
John A. Greco, the DMA’s former president and CEO, left the organization in mid-January, more than five months before the end of his contract.
Allen begins his tenure as interim president and CEO of the organization on Friday, Feb. 5, and will be based out of the DMA’s New York City office.
“Bob Allen's in-depth knowledge of direct marketing and his multi-year experience leading a trade organization make him the natural choice to lead DMA during this time,” said Eugene R. Raitt, DMA chairman, in a statement. “He has successfully navigated businesses through revolutionary changes in direct marketing and will keep DMA advancing into the 21st Century. He is exactly the kind of forward-thinking leader we need.”
Allen began his tenure with the Vermont Country Store in 1982, when he joined the company as assistant to the president. He advanced to president in 1994, becoming the first president of the business who wasn’t a part of the Orton family, which owns the company. Allen was named CEO in 1996. He left the company in 2004.
Before joining Vermont Country Store, he held a variety of positions with Eastern Mountain Sports, a sporting goods marketer.
Since leaving Vermont Country Store, he has run Eagle Ridge Consulting. He also sits on the boards of six New England firms: Gardeners Supply; Cuddledown; Susan Sargent Designs; JK Adams; Danforth Pewterers; and Kalow Technologies.
Allen has experience running a marketing trade organization, as well: He both served on the board, and was president of, the New England Mail Order Association.
In addition to his marketing activities, Allen is an active outdoorsman. In April 2009, he was among a group that climbed Mount Everest.
“I am honored to serve DMA while the board conducts a thorough search for a permanent president and CEO,” Allen said in a statement. “Direct marketing is in the middle of a period of rapid change. It will be important to maintain a balance between tried and true methods and new concepts like social media and the digital landscape; as I did when guiding The Vermont Country Store in its evolution from strictly ‘traditional’ media to digital. Successful companies will be the ones who understand and embrace both. I look forward to guiding DMA through this process.”
