American multinational luggage manufacturer and retailer Samsonite‘s CEO and Executive Director Timothy Parker is due to step down from his role; he is to be replaced by in-house candidate Ramesh Tainwala.
Tim Parker‘s CEO escapades began when he was appointed CEO of Kenwood Appliances in 1986, ten years later he was the CEO of Clarks shoes. He was also Chief Executive of Kwik-Fit in 2002 and The Automobile Association in 2004. Timothy Parker finally joined Samsonite in 2008 as the non-executive Chariman and was appointed CEO one year later.
Samsonite was founded in Denver Colorado in 1910, it has products ranging from small toiletries bags, large suitcases and briefcases. The company‘s net sales for the six months ended June 30, 2014 increased by 13.8% to a record $1,105.3 million with growth across all regions. Last year the company announced it plans to sell luggage for $50 in emerging market such as India.
When Tim Parker joined the company 6 years ago it had been hit by the global credit crisis which led to profits declining from $148 to $53 in 2009. However after extensive restructuring and investing in products and marketing, the company resurfaced, strengthened with an achievement of $250m, a record of results. In 2011 Samsonite was also successfully listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange with a market capitalisation of $2 billion.
Mr Ramesh Tainwala, Chief operating officer as well as Executive Director will be appointed the new CEO. Tainwala was originally an entrepreneur in plastic processing and consumer goods industries, he joined Samsonite almost 20 years ago.
A warm welcome from the current CEO Timothy Parker, to the new: “Ramesh has proved himself more than capable of leading our business, and with his deep expertise, industry knowledge and track record of success, I can think of no better individual to be the Group‘s new CEO. In my role as Non-Executive Chairman, I will work closely with Ramesh as I direct my efforts to managing Samsonite‘s strategic relationships with our key stakeholders and guiding the Group‘s overall strategy.”
