CROSSMARK Names Crafton Chief Executive Officer

PLANO, Texas, Jan. 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- CROSSMARK, a leading sales and marketing services company in the consumer goods industry, providing growth solutions with exceptional service to manufacturers and retailers, today announced the appointment of Joe Crafton as Chief Executive Officer of CROSSMARK.  Mr. Crafton previously served as company President.

John Thompson, CROSSMARK's CEO since 2010, now will focus primarily on acquisitions and strategic alliances as the company's Chief Strategy Officer.  Thompson remains a shareholder, serves on the Board of Directors for CROSSMARK, and will continue to be responsible for overseeing the company's international businesses.

Ben Fischer maintains his role as Chief Operating Officer and has assumed the additional title of President as well as other responsibilities.

The moves, which were effective January 7, 2013, come after the recent majority investment in CROSSMARK by an affiliate of Warburg Pincus.  Thompson said the investment brings a renewed focus on growth.

"We have charted a course for the future that positions us well to grow our business and better serve our clients," Thompson said.  "I chose to create the new Chief Strategy Officer role in order to better focus my efforts on external growth opportunities.  Simultaneously, Joe and Ben will continue to develop and lead new initiatives that will continue to enhance service to our clients and customers."

Crafton began his CROSSMARK career in 1988, was elected to the Board of Directors in 2000 and held a variety of leadership positions before being appointed President of the company in 2010.  Prior to joining the company, Crafton was a manager with Procter & Gamble.  

"For nearly 25 years, Joe has proven himself in a variety of CROSSMARK senior leadership roles in both the legacy sales agency business as well as emerging and innovative service businesses," said Jim Neary, managing director, Warburg Pincus.  "Under Joe's leadership of the company's marketing services division, CROSSMARK has become the North American leader of in-store marketing services."

Crafton said it is an exciting time to be part of CROSSMARK.

"We have great people and a strong culture of exceeding clients' expectations with service excellence.  With the twin tailwinds of both outsourcing and shopper marketing, we are well positioned for significant growth.  I look forward to building on our company's strong foundation and to continue delivering more value and growth for our clients and customers," he said. 

About CROSSMARK
For more than 100 years, CROSSMARK (www.crossmark.com) has helped the most powerful brands in the world achieve their business objectives across a wide range of retail channels. Expertise encompasses the areas of Headquarter Sales, Retail Merchandising, Retailer Solutions, Event Marketing, In-Store Data Collection & Field Intelligence, Retail Analytics, and Retail Technology Solutions. Headquartered in Plano, Texas, CROSSMARK employs more than 34,000 associates worldwide with 47 offices throughout the U.S., Canada, Mexico, Australia and New Zealand.

SOURCE CROSSMARK