ROCKFORD, Mich., Nov 1, 2002 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (NYSE:WWW) today announced the appointment of Scott Sible to the newly created position of Vice President and General Manager for its U.S. Merrell Performance Footwear operations. In this new capacity, Sible, formerly Vice President of Sales for Merrell's U.S. business, will add marketing and merchandising activities to his list of responsibilities. Sible will report directly to Jacques Lavertue, President of the Merrell division.
Commenting on the promotion, Lavertue said, 'The past few years have seen a seven-fold increase in Merrell's global business. To ensure continued growth, we needed to scale our management team to reflect the new reality of the brand. Scott has headed U.S. sales for the past 3 1/2 years, and has not only contributed his strong selling skills to the brand's phenomenal success, but has also played a key role in both the marketing and operations sides of the business. This promotion will allow Scott to concentrate on Merrell's further development in the U.S. market while freeing me to concentrate on global sales expansion, product development and the refinement of our supply chain management,' added Lavertue.
Sible concluded, stating, 'Over the past several years my focus has been on assembling what I believe is the best sales team in the industry. With this task complete and strong sales momentum underway, my new role is to make Merrell simply the best brand with which to do business within the U.S. market — thus propelling the brand to even greater levels of success in the future.'
With a commitment to service and product excellence, Wolverine World Wide, Inc. is one of the world's leading marketers of branded casual, active lifestyle, work, outdoor sport and uniform footwear and slippers. The Company's portfolio of highly recognized brands includes: Bates(R), Hush Puppies(R), HYTEST(R), Merrell(R) and Wolverine(R). The Company also markets footwear under the following popular licensed brands: CAT(R), Coleman(R), Harley-Davidson(R), Karen Neuburger(R), Stanley(R) and Turtle Fur(R). The Company's products are carried by leading retailers in the U.S. and are distributed internationally in over 140 countries. For additional information, please visit our website, www.wolverineworldwide.com.
CONTACT: Wolverine World Wide, Inc.
Thomas P. Mundt, 616/866-5589