Brown Shoe Creates Dedicated Original Dr. Scholl's Sales Force
ST. LOUIS, August 21, 2003 -- Brown Shoe Company, Inc. (NYSE: BWS) today announced the formation of a six-member sales force exclusively for its Original Dr. Scholl's® brand. The team includes a national sales manager, three account directors and two account executives, and will serve the brand's department store and independent customers nationwide."Original Dr. Scholl's®, an icon in footwear fashion, is an important brand for Brown Shoe, which licenses the name from Schering-Plough under a long term agreement. Having a dedicated sales force will be a key factor in its growth as we develop Original Dr. Scholl's® into a year-round brand, with an expanded and diverse line of footwear," said Alan Silverstein, senior VP and general manager of Dr. Scholl's® Women's Shoes. "Our sales team will communicate these exciting changes to our department store and independent partners, and provide them with the highest level of customer service."
Brown Shoe has appointed Robert Brandon, Pat Geller, Barry Kove, Richard Len, Michael Beecher and Arlene Gaoiran to the Dr. Scholl's® sales team.
Robert M. Brandon, national sales manager; oversees the sales team and manages the Original Dr. Scholl's® West Coast department store business. Brandon comes to Brown Shoe with more than 20 years of experience in the footwear industry. Most recently, he was regional sales manager for Glory Chen International, where he managed the Lisa & Vicky footwear business for the Western United States.
Pat Geller, account director, manages the Original Dr. Scholl's® department store business in the Northeast, and is based in New York. Geller brings 18 years of experience in the shoe industry, most recently as the account executive for Rebel Shoes.
Barry N. Kove, account director, manages the department store business in the Midwest for Original Dr. Scholl's®. Kove has spent more than 20 years in the shoe industry with Nine West Group, US Shoe and, for the last five years, with Caressa as the Midwest territory manager.
Richard G. Len, Jr., account director, manages the Original Dr. Scholl's® department store business in the Southeast. Richard joined Brown Shoe Company in 2002 as an Account Director representing LifeStride, and served in that role until his recent transfer to the Original Dr. Scholl's® division.
Michael S. Beecher and Arlene P. Gaoiran, account executives, serve independent store customers on the East and West coasts, respectively. Beecher's previous experience includes Ecco North American, Kenneth Cole Productions and, most recently, Pony Footwear. Gaoiran has held positions with bebe footwear, BCBG Max Azria and Nordstrom.
Dr. Scholl's® is a registered trademark of Schering-Plough Corporation, which produces the Dr. Scholl's® line of foot care and medicated products. Brown Shoe Company has collaborated with Schering-Plough since 1991 to design and manufacture Dr. Scholl's® footwear for healthy feet and posture.
Brown Shoe is a $1.8 billion footwear company with worldwide operations. The company operates the 900-store Famous Footwear chain, which sells brand name shoes for less. It also operates 400 Naturalizer stores in the U.S. and Canada that sell the Naturalizer brand of shoes and accessories. Brown Shoe, through its wholesale divisions, owns and markets leading footwear brands including Naturalizer, LifeStride, Connie, Buster Brown; it also markets licensed brands including Dr. Scholl's® and Carlos by Carlos Santana for adults, and Barbie, Supergirl, Spider-Man and Bob-the-Builder character footwear for children. Brown Shoe press releases are available on the company's web site at www.brownshoe.com