Peter Ghiloni, to retire as CEO.
Swisher International Inc.’s President and CEO, Peter Ghiloni, plans to retire at the end of 2018 after 34 years with the Company and more than 45 years in the tobacco industry.
John Miller, Swisher president.
John Miller has been appointed president of Swisher, effective Jan. 1, 2018, as part of the Company’s succession planning process. Also, effective Jan. 1, 2018, Lou Caldropoli will be promoted to the newly-created position of chief operations officer and John Haley will become Swisher’s senior vice president of sales and marketing.
Under Ghiloni’s leadership as the CEO, the Company dramatically increased sales and market share while expanding its global presence with the establishment of Swisher Dominicana, Inc., the acquisition of Drew Estate and the formation of alliances in new industries.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed working for Swisher and leading its incredible team of employees. Our relationships with customers and industry colleagues also helped me forge friendships that will last a lifetime. I am excited about the prospects for Swisher under John’s leadership, which will ensure management continuity and will drive our continued growth. I know that John will take the Company to new heights through expansion of our core business, creative innovation and exploration of new markets. John has a great team and will enjoy the support of Lou Caldropoli as the Company’s new chief operations officer and the other members of the executive team: Joe Augustus, Chris Casey, Lee Creasman, Glenn Goodroe and John Haley,” Ghiloni said enthusiastically.
John Miller joined Swisher in 2012 as its senior vice president of sales and marketing after working within the Tobacco and CPG industries for more than 25 years. Miller worked for the U.S. Smokeless Tobacco Company where he rose to the position of regional vice president, was interim president of Goldwater’s Foods of Scottsdale and a principal in two consulting firms. During his tenure with Swisher, John positioned the sales and marketing teams for record growth by expanding the National Accounts team, developing the Trade Marketing, Business Analytics and Consumer Engagement functions and overseeing more than 150 promotions in the field sales force.
“I am honored and thrilled in being named Swisher’s next president. I look forward to expanding Peter’s legacy and maintaining the Company as the industry’s leader. Our team looks forward to continuing to develop the distributor and retailer programs that have connected our brands with our adult customers. We also anticipate some exciting forays into opportunities outside our core businesses,” Miller commented. Miller received his Bachelor of Science degree from UNLV and his Master of Business Administration degree from Pepperdine University in Malibu, Calif.
Lou Caldropoli, currently the senior vice president of finance, will assume the newly created position of chief operations officer and report directly to John Miller. In this new role, Caldropoli will utilize his 21 years of experience with Swisher to lead the Company’s global finance, information technology and operations groups.
Caldropoli joined Swisher after working with Coopers & Lybrand LLP. He is a CPA and received a Bachelor of Science degree from Iona College.
Swisher also announced that John Haley is being elevated from vice president of corporate marketing to senior vice president of sales and marketing to take over for Miller. Haley joined Swisher in 2013 as the vice president of trade marketing and was promoted to his current role in 2015. Prior to working for Swisher, Haley spent 20 years with U.S. Smokeless Tobacco and more than two years with Lindt Chocolate. Haley received his Bachelor of Science degree from Millersville University and his Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Delaware.
