James A.

Simone 13799 Forum Meadows Drive Carmel, IN 46033

Home: 317-810-9191 Cell: 317-450-2739 E-mail: js5776ca@westpost.net
EXECUTIVE MARKETING PROFESSIONAL
20 years of experience in creating profitable sales growth. Successful leader in
implementing proven niche and mass marketing strategies through; merchandising,
catalog, telemarketing, direct sales, tradeshow, e-commerce, public relations,
and social media strategies. Experienced in aligning departmental and individual
talents to maximize and focus on the company's mission, vision and values.
EXPERTISE AND CRITICAL CONTRIBUTIONS
* Strategic Planning & Implementation
* Crisis & Turnaround Management
* Executive Leadership Coaching & Mentoring
* Best-In-Class Customer Relationship Models
* Budget Planning, Development & Control
* Cost Reductions with Quality Improvement
* Lean Process Improvements
* Mission, Vision & Values Focused
* Process, People, Platform & Performance Driven
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE
Norwood Promotional Products, a wholly owned subsidiary of BIC Indianapolis, IN
Senior Vice President of Marketing (October 2006 - June 2010)
Led the marketing, merchandising and creative positioning to brand this $230+ mi
llion company. Refocused marketing's efforts to brand Norwood through five key
drivers; innovative new products & product rationalization (generated over $45 m
illion in new sales while rationalizing $15 million), a positive customer experi
ence (improved service levels that decreased order complexity & production times
), promotion of top 250 sellers, development of custom programs (custom merchand
ising & services based on sales values) and the increased use of technology to d
rive the merchandising and selling experience that kept the focus on prospecting
, retaining and cross-selling to over 20,000 distributors with full P&L responsi
bility of over $8 million annually with a staff of 50. International travel exp
erience. Managed a direct staff of seven and reported to BIC Graphic Vice Presi
dent & General Manager.
Oriental Trading Company, Inc. Omaha, NE
Marketing and Merchandising Manager (July 2004 - September 2006)
Founder of OTC's imprinted promotional products brand, Fun Impressions and manag
ed OTC's prepackaged gifts brand, Go Gifts. Both new ventures, combined generate
d $15 million in new sales in an 18 month period from a $4 million ad spend. Com
plete P&L management. Championed the system design to develop the ability to dro
p ship merchandise. Led marketing, creative, operations, systems development, cu
stomer service, e-commerce, vendor relations and customer analysis direction to
drive profitable customer relationships and develop brand exposure. Internationa
l travel experience. Managed a direct staff of three and reported to the VP of
Merchandising.
Executive Greetings, Inc. New Hartford, CT
Director of Marketing and E-commerce (August 2001 - July 2004)
Directed three catalog brands (GoPromos, Baldwin Cooke, US Diary) and all nine o
f EGI's web sites totaling $31 million in sales with a $7 million full P&L respo
nsibility budget. Led circulation, analysis, creative, telemarketing, e-commerc
e and vendor relations to present consistent brand images and market exposure.
Expansion of web marketing, through Google Ad Words and SEO resulted in a 65% sa
les gain from 2002 to 2003, 40% of which were new customers. The GoPromos brand
12 month file grew by 35% and was ranked #68 in the top 200 catalogs by Catalog
Success Magazine in March of 2004. Managed a staff of seven and reported to the
VP of Marketing.
Curtis Rand Industries, Inc. San Francisco, CA
Vice President of Marketing (Sept.1997 - continued above)
Assisted in the sale of Curtis Rand to Executive Greetings. Led strategic plann
ing and campaign implementation for this $6 million, privately-held promotional
company. Developed all direct mail, telemarketing and e-commerce campaigns with
a $2 million advertising budget. Negotiated costs and cultivated relationships
with over 50 vendors supplying 4,000+ products. Created an intranet campaign a
nalysis system and assisted in the creation of an award winning web site. Manag
ed a staff of eight and reported to owner.
Positive Promotions Brooklyn/Flushing, NY
Director of Marketing (Sept. 1994 - Aug. 1997)
Managed special event catalogs for multiple niche markets (education, health, pu
blic safety) for this $50 million, privately-held promotional products company.
Led customer database segmentation and contact planning with $5 million budget.
Directed research and creative team with ad agency in NYC and Tucson, AZ. Dir
ected all merchandising, drop-ship vendor relations, sales and product forecasts
as well as campaign analysis. Managed a staff of three and reported to owner.
Amsterdam Printing Corporation Amsterdam, NY
Senior Marketing Manager (Jan. 1993 - Aug. 1994)
Managed all USA and Canadian in-house direct mail and telemarketing campaigns fo
r this $40 million, privately-held printing company. Organized and directed $10
million budget. Database segmentation strategy plan increased order volume by
15% from over 500,000 customers and reduced costs by 10%. Managed a staff of tw
o and reported to Vice President of Marketing.
Calendar Product Manager (June 1990 - Dec. 1992)
Acquired over 20,000 new customers and retained over 65% of existing customer ba
se yearly. Managed a staff of two and reported to Vice President of Marketing.
EDUCATION / PROFESSIONAL CERTIFICATION
B.S. in Marketing - Bentley College - Waltham, MA
A.A. in Computer Information Systems - St. Leo College - St. Leo, FL
C.A.S. (Certified Advertising Specialist) Degree from PPAI (Promotional Products
Association International)