Blyth, parent company of direct selling brands PartyLite and ViSalus, recently made some changes to its board of directors. The Greenwich, Connecticut-based company announced the retirement of Neal I. Goldman and welcomed Jim Williams as its newest board member.
Goldman, President of investment advisory firm Goldman Capital Management, served as a Blyth director for 23 years. Williams is President, CEO and Managing Partner of Karlen Williams Graybill Advertising (KWG), whose clients include a number of Fortune 500 companies and some of the nation’s fastest growing business startups. He also owns a controlling interest in I.M. Productions and the communications business Better Brand Initiatives, licensor of the televised mini-show FYI Before You Buy.
“Jim brings leadership, strategy and a strong knowledge of marketing, social media and global consumer insight,” Blyth CEO Robert B. Goergen said in a statement. “I look forward to the new perspective that Jim brings to the company.”
Blyth operates in 21 countries through PartyLite, a designer and marketer of candles and accessories for the home, health and wellness brand ViSalus, and a handful of brands sold through the catalog/Internet channel. The company reported a rocky second quarter as sales continued to wilt, decreasing approximately 25 percent from the prior year period to $157.8 million. The weak performance was largely a result of declining salesforce numbers at ViSalus North America, said Goergen.
“ViSalus management is focusing on rebuilding the North American market through leadership development programs while right-sizing the cost structure in North America to regain profitability, as well as building their international business,” Goergen shared in the company’s financial release. “In the second quarter, ViSalus continued its geographic expansion initiatives, opening in Ireland, with two additional markets planned to open this year and an additional seven markets in 2015.”