The board of directors of EveryWare Global, parent of the Oneida and Anchor Hocking brands, yesterday announced they had hired Patrick Lockwood-Taylor as the new CEO after the departure of former President and CEO Sam Solomon last year. Sean Gumbs acted as interim CEO and will return to his position as senior managing director at FTI Consulting after he helps Lockwood-Taylor through a brief transition.
“I am very excited to be joining a company that has such rich heritage and brands that are household names in their categories,” Lockwood-Taylor said in a press release. “As we invest in our brands, operations and organization with our board’s support, I am confident that we will restore the company’s growth to industry-leading levels and ensure that Anchor Hocking and Oneida brands are the ones most preferred by our consumers and customers.”
Lockwood-Taylor is known for growing brands, raising profit and working with the largest international retailers, according to a press release. He previously served as the vice president of Personal Health Care North American and Global Digestive Wellness at Proctor & Gamble.
“We are very pleased to have attracted an executive of Patrick’s caliber to EveryWare Global,” said David N. Weinstein, chairman of the board of directors. “Patrick understands what it takes to build brands, businesses and organizations through outstanding leadership, innovation and excellence in execution to deliver on the expectations of customers and consumers.”
“He has a passion for innovation that will help us leverage the strength of Anchor Hocking and Oneida portfolios in North America and around the world, and has demonstrated his ability to transform companies into high-performance, revenue-maximizing operations. The board believes this is the perfect combination of talent and experience to lead EveryWare in its ongoing transformation to achieve high performance, customer satisfaction and success.”
Lockwood-Taylor started his career in Proctor & Gamble’s food service division in the United Kingdom and moved up the ranks from there. He has more than 15 years in global leadership role experience, with assignments in the United Kingdom, Africa, Switzerland, Malaysia, Singapore and the U.S.
Lockwood-Taylor has a degree in economics and management studies from Leeds University and a postgraduate diploma in marketing from the Chartered Institute of Marketing.
This changeover comes after EveryWare Global filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June, which company officials say reduced its debt by about 84 percent. In 2014 Anchor Hocking plants in Lancaster and Monaca, Pennsylvania, shut down for a short time in the spring, and workers here accepted wage and other concessions.
