“The board of directors is excited to welcome Mike Bauer to Libbey Inc.,” said John Orr, Libbey’s lead independent director. “As part of Libbey’s succession planning process, which has been underway for some time, we undertook an extensive search and our board believes that Mike is the ideal candidate to succeed Bill. Mike’s extensive experience and track record of success leading strategy, growth and margin expansion in multi-channel, global consumer product organizations are a strong fit for Libbey. In addition, Mike’s considerable knowledge of finance, supply chain, marketing, manufacturing and e-commerce will complement our team and help us continue to drive profitable growth, operational excellence and organizational excellence. We are confident that Mike, working together with our strong management team, will help us leverage and expand upon our position as the world’s leading global glass tableware manufacturer.”
“I’m truly excited to be joining Libbey and believe that our organization has a tremendous opportunity to build upon the foundational elements that Bill and the team have put in place over the last few years,” said Bauer. “I look forward to working with the executive leadership team and the board of directors to continue building a strong, dynamic and agile organization that’s focused on meeting the needs of our end-users, channel partners and shareholders. The global consumer goods market continues to undergo a transformational shift as changes in consumer preferences and channels require fresh ideas and decisive leadership to effectively navigate this environment. I believe Libbey’s leadership position across its key markets, and the breadth of investments that Bill and the team have underway, position the organization well to leverage our strengths and competitive advantages to create strong value in the future.”
Commenting on Mr. Foley’s leadership over the past three years, Mr. Orr said, “Bill has overseen a critical period in Libbey’s commercial transformation, including the creation of our highly successful and expanding e-commerce platform. Further, he reinvigorated a culture of product innovation that is now driving creativity at Libbey, delivering a wealth of new product choices to our customers each year. The environment that Bill has guided our Company through during this time period, particularly the competitive changes and challenges taking place within our industry, has not been easy. His leadership has helped to maintain and grow our leading industry position and we want to thank Bill for his hard work and dedication. We are also glad that we’ll continue to have his insights and contributions as an ongoing member of our board of directors.”
Mr. Bauer has more than 30 years of experience with leading consumer product manufacturers. Most recently, he served as president of The Master Lock Company (the Security segment of Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc.), from 2014 to 2018. In that role, he was responsible for all aspects of the global consumer goods manufacturer, including the marketing and distribution of locks, safes and other mechanical, electromechanical and digital security products. Prior to joining The Master Lock Company, Mr. Bauer served as president of the U.S. business of Moen, also a Fortune Brands Home & Security, Inc. subsidiary and an international manufacturer, marketer and distributor of residential and commercial faucets, sinks, bath accessories and bath safety products. Mr. Bauer joined Moen as corporate controller in 1997 and held successive roles of increasing responsibility, including director of marketing and product development CSI and vice president and general manager of Moen’s retail business, before assuming the role of president of the U.S. business in 2011.
Mr. Bauer holds a B.B.A. in Accounting from Cleveland State University and an MBA in Finance from Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio.
The Compensation Committee of the board of directors has authorized the issuance to Mr. Bauer, on March 25, 2019, of 116,827 restricted stock units (RSUs) that are scheduled to vest in equal installments on March 25, 2020, March 25, 2021 and March 25, 2022, respectively. In addition, Mr. Bauer will receive an award of 150,000 non-qualified stock options (NQSOs) that will cliff vest on March 25, 2022 and have a 10-year term. These 150,000 NQSOs will be divided into four groups of 37,500 NQSOs each. The exercise price of the first group of NQSOs will be $7.00 per share, the exercise price of the second group of NQSOs will be $8.50 per share, the exercise price of the third group of NQSOs will be $10.00 per share, and the exercise price of the fourth group of NQSOs will be $11.50 per share. These awards of RSUs and NQSOs were granted to induce Mr. Bauer to join the Company and will be issued outside the terms of the Company’s Amended and Restated 2006 Omnibus Incentive Plan and 2016 Omnibus Incentive Plan in accordance with Section 711(a) of the NYSE American Company Guide.
