Wm. Wrigley Jr. Co. has named William D. Perez, an outsider, as president and CEO.
Perez succeeds Bill Wrigley Jr. who remains chairman. The hiring of Perez marks a major shift for the company, that since its founding, has relied on a family member to lead the charge.
Since 2004, Perez, 59, worked for Nike, Inc., where he briefly held the CEO post until disagreements with the company and its founder, Philip H. Knight, prompted his departure, according to The Wall Street Journal.
“The appointment of Bill Perez to be the first person to serve as president and CEO of the Wrigley Company from outside the family is indeed an historic and important milestone for our Company,” Bill Wrigley, Jr. said in a statement.
Prior to working at Nike, Perez spent 34 years with SC Johnson, including eight years as president and CEO.
On Monday, the company reported third quarter sales of $1.18 billion, an 11% increase from one year ago. Gains ranged from 7% in North America to 23% in Asia. An aggressive cycle of new product launches this summer helped drive U.S. growth, including LifeSavers, Orange Mints and Fruit Splosions. Upcoming launches include dark chocolate-dipped Altoids, Life Savers Fruit Tarts, Hubba Bubba Sour Gummi Tape and Raspberry Mint—and Orbit White Bubblemint. A new kind of pellet product called Eclipse Fusion is currently rolling out, the company said.
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