Stephen I. Sadove, retired chairman and chief executive officer of Saks Incorporated, will speak with School of Communication students at 2 p.m. on Feb. 27 in Shoma Hall, room 3053 in the Communication International Building.
Sadove is widely regarded as an innovative leader in retail. He serves on the boards of directors of Colgate-Palmolive, JCPenney, Aramark and Ruby Tuesday. He also serves as chairman of the board of the National Retail Federation, the industry’s largest trade organization and government lobbyist.
Sadove joined Saks as vice chairman in 2002, and was named chief operating officer in 2004. He became CEO in 2006 and successfully steered the company through a global recession as chairman and CEO from 2007 to 2013. In November 2013, Saks was sold to Hudson’s Bay Company for a price of $16 per share in an all-cash transaction valued at approximately $2.9 billion.
Prior to joining Saks, Sadove built a distinguished career in marketing and consumer products spanning more than 25 years. Between 1975 and 1991, Sadove held various positions General Foods USA, including Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Desserts Division. While at Bristol-Myers Squibb from 1991 to 2002, Sadove lead Clairol to become the number one hair care business in the United States, relaunched the Herbal Essences brand into a $700 million business, and completed the sale of the beauty care business to Procter & Gamble for approximately $5 billion.
Sadove is a graduate of Hamilton College, where he serves as chairman of the board of trustees. He holds an MBA with distinction from Harvard Business School and is also a recipient of an Honorary Doctor of Commercial Science Degree from LIM College.
Associate Professor Alyse Lancaster, chair of the Department of Strategic Communication, will facilitate a discussion of Sadove’s experiences in retail, marketing, branding and communication. A question-and-answer session with students will follow the discussion.
This event is for UM students. It is closed to the public.
