PLEASANTVILLE, N.Y., Dec. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ --
The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. (NYSE:RDA) today named James A. Northrop, former President and CEO of Princess House, as President of QSP, Inc., the company's schools and youth fundraising division. The appointment is effective immediately.
He succeeds Gary S. Rich, who has asked to step down to spend more time with his family. After eight years with RDA, Rich will leave the company after spending several months assisting Northrop with the transition.
"We are delighted to appoint James Northrop to lead QSP," said Thomas D. Gardner, Executive Vice President of RDA, to whom QSP reports. "Jim is a very talented direct-sales executive with solid experience in building large sales organizations. He has deep experience running large divisions and managing field sales reps, including leading significant revenue growth, expanding product lines and growing sales forces. We thank Gary for his numerous contributions to RDA and wish him all the best in his future endeavors."
Northrop spent most of the past 12 years as President and CEO of Princess House, a company with more than 16,000 field reps that markets giftware and household products at in-home parties in the United States, Canada and Mexico. He led the management and field organization of this venerable direct selling company through revitalization and significant growth, expanding into new market segments, geography and product categories.
Earlier, Northrop was President and CEO of Popular Club Plan, a catalog division of J. Crew selling apparel, housewares and electronics. He led the unit to significant growth and recruiting successes, building the sales force to more than 100,000 reps. Prior to that he ran the costume jewelry marketing divisions of Crystal Brands, Hallmark Cards and General Mills. He started his career in package goods marketing, with Quaker Oats Company and Chesebrough Ponds. He holds a B.A. from Brown University and an MBA from Columbia University.
QSP has helped schools across the U.S. and Canada raise close to $3 billion over the last 40 years. As the educational fundraising arm of Reader's Digest Association, QSP also creates and supports various programs that teach children important life lessons about goal setting, planning teamwork, and the value of community service. For more information about QSP, log onto http://www.qsp.com/.
The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. is a global publisher and direct marketer of products that inform, entertain and inspire people of all ages and cultures around the world. Global headquarters are located at Pleasantville, New York. The corporate website is http://www.rda.com/.
DATASOURCE: Reader's Digest Association, Inc.
CONTACT: Media - Susan Russ, +1-914-244-5488; or Financial - Richard
Clark, +1-914-244-5425, both for The Reader's Digest Association, Inc.
Web site: http://www.rd.com/
http://www.qsp.com/
http://www.rda.com/