Jarden Announces Intention to Split Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Roles

RYE, N.Y., Jan. 6, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Jarden Corporation (NYSE: JAH) today reported its plan to split the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer roles following its 2011 Annual Meeting, currently scheduled for May 2011.

Under the new organizational structure, Martin E. Franklin, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Jarden Corporation, will continue to serve as Executive Chairman, overseeing all aspects of corporate strategy, including growth initiatives, and corporate culture and philosophy.  James E. Lillie, currently Jarden's President and Chief Operating Officer, will assume the role of Chief Executive Officer, managing the day-to-day operations of the business and continuing to work with Mr. Franklin and Mr. Ian Ashken, Jarden's Vice Chairman and Chief Financial Officer, to focus on driving consistent, profitable growth across all of Jarden's business segments. Mr. Lillie will also be nominated to join the Board of Directors at the 2011 Annual Meeting.  

Commenting on the change, Martin E. Franklin said, "When Ian and I founded the concept of what was to become Jarden Corporation in 2001, the Company had annualized revenue of approximately $300 million, nearly all of which was domestically based. Today, the Company has annualized revenue of over $6.0 billion, supported by a sophisticated operating platform to help maximize the potential of each of our businesses, and nearly 40% of revenue is generated from international markets."

"Today's announcement is the natural evolution of balancing the needs of a global consumer products company, and the maturation of Jarden's governance structure, while we continue to build upon the unique characteristics that make Jarden special," Mr. Franklin continued. "After consultation with the Board of Directors, I believe that 2011 is the right time for me to become Executive Chairman and to promote Jim to the position of Chief Executive Officer. As Executive Chairman, I will continue to set the strategic and philosophical direction of the Company while Jim will focus on the daily intricacies of business operations, closely collaborating with Ian Ashken and myself in what we internally call our 'Office of the Chairman'.  I think there are benefits to Jarden from having a new CEO after 10 years, particularly for interfacing with customers and from a corporate governance perspective, and I would like to congratulate Jim on receiving this well-earned promotion. Jim has been an integral part of Jarden's success since joining the company back in 2003 and his promotion highlights the bench strength within the business."

Mr. Franklin concluded, "Jarden has performed exceptionally well in the tough economic environment over the last couple of years. As we enter 2011, we believe the current trends in our businesses put us on a solid growth trajectory, and we continue to expect organic top-line growth of 3-5%, with higher reported growth taking into account the 2010 tuck-in acquisitions.  We also expect at least 50 basis points improvement in gross margin and a 10 percent improvement in adjusted earnings per share. As always, the underpinning of Jarden's strong performance is the hard work and dedication of our employees, and I would like to thank them for all the support they have given me over the last ten years and assure them that I will continue to be as committed to Jarden's success as ever in the future."

Jarden Corporation is a leading provider of niche consumer products.  Jarden operates in three primary business segments through a number of well recognized brands, including: Outdoor Solutions: Abu Garcia®, Aero®,  Berkley®, Campingaz® and Coleman®, Fenwick®, Gulp!®, K2®, Marker®, Marmot®, Mitchell®, Penn®, Rawlings®, Shakespeare®, Stearns®, Stren®, Trilene®, Volkl® and Zoot®; Consumer Solutions: Bionaire®, Crock-Pot®, FoodSaver®, Health o meter®, Holmes®, Mr. Coffee®, Oster®, Patton®, Rival®, Seal-a-Meal®, Sunbeam®, VillaWare® and White Mountain®; and Branded Consumables: Ball®, Bee®, Bicycle®, Billy Boy®, Crawford®, Diamond®, Dicon®, Fiona®, First Alert®, First Essentials®, Forster®, Hoyle®, Kerr®, Lehigh®, Leslie-Locke®, Lillo®, Loew Cornell®, Mapa®, NUK®, Pine Mountain®, Quickie®, Spontex® and Tigex®.  Headquartered in Rye, N.Y., Jarden has over 25,000 employees worldwide. For more information, please visit www.jarden.com.

Note: This news release contains "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the federal securities laws and is intended to qualify for the Safe Harbor from liability established by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding the Company's adjusted earnings per share, the outlook for the Company's markets and the demand for its products, estimated sales, segment earnings, earnings per share, cash flows from operations, free cash flow, future revenues and gross, operating and EBITDA margin improvement requirement and expansion, organic growth, the success of new product introductions, growth in costs and expenses, the impact of commodities, currencies and transportation costs and our ability to manage our risk in these areas, and the impact of acquisitions, divestitures, restructurings, and other unusual items, including Jarden's ability to integrate and obtain the anticipated results and synergies from its consummated acquisitions. These projections and statements are based on management's estimates and assumptions with respect to future events and financial performance and are believed to be reasonable, though are inherently uncertain and difficult to predict. Actual results could differ materially from those projected as a result of certain factors. A discussion of factors that could cause results to vary is included in the Company's periodic and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

SOURCE Jarden Corporation

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