Stephen Smith leaves Arden for Hain Celestial
Resigns as Executive VP and CFO after 12 years at the company
Elizabeth Arden has announced that Stephen J Smith has resigned as its Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer in order to accept a position as Executive VP and CFO with organic and natural products company The Hain Celestial Group. Smith will remain with Arden until 1 September and will begin at Hain Celestial on 3 September; he replaces Ira J Lamel, who retires on 31 August.
E Scott Beattie, Chairman, President and CEO of Elizabeth Arden, Inc., commented: “Steve has been a valuable member of our management team since he joined us in 2001, shortly after the Elizabeth Arden acquisition. Along with the strong finance and accounting team that Steve has built, he has been instrumental in managing the financial governance of our company to very high standards. Steve has been a trusted colleague and on behalf of the company, I'd like to thank Steve for his dedication, leadership and contributions and wish him the best in his new position.”
“The past 12 years have been extremely rewarding and it has been an honour to participate in the company’s significant growth over that time,” added Smith. “While I will miss my colleagues, I look forward to new challenges in another consumer products industry as I pursue this unexpected opportunity. Elizabeth Arden has a strong and highly talented finance organisation, and I am confident that Elizabeth Arden will continue to enjoy much future success.”
Commenting on the appointment, Irwin D Simon, founder, President and CEO of Hain Celestial, said: “Steve has an extensive background in working with consumer products companies on a global basis and brings a demonstrated ability to implement business analytics for high-performance strategic growth. Steve is the right person to work with our management team in achieving our next level of growth.”
Arden says it is currently on the lookout for a new CFO.