Brown Shoe Company, Inc. announced the company’s board of directors has appointed Diane Sullivan chairman of the board, effective Feb. 2, 2014. Sullivan will add chairmanship duties to her existing roles as president and chief executive officer, when Ron Fromm steps down from his chairman role. Fromm will remain a member of Brown Shoe Company’s board of directors.
Since she took on the role of president and chief executive officer in May 2011, Sullivan has been focused on aligning the company’s brands and businesses with both its mission and strategic financial goals. Over the past two years, Brown Shoe Company has made great strides in its portfolio realignment efforts at the infrastructure, retail and brand levels, which has led to a significant improvement in shareholder value.
Sullivan joined Brown Shoe Company in 2004 as president and assumed the additional role of chief operating officer in 2006. She was elected to Brown Shoe Company’s board of directors in 2007. Prior to Brown Shoe Company, she worked at The Stride Rite Corporation, where she served as president and chief operating officer of the corporation and as a member of the board of directors. From there, Sullivan went to Phillips-Van Heusen as vice chairman of Footwear before joining Brown Shoe Company. In addition to serving on several footwear industry boards, Sullivan is currently on the boards of BJC HealthCare and Enterprise Holdings and will become a member of the board of trustees at Washington University on July 1.
