Macy's names new board member

CINCINNATI — Paul Varga, chairman and CEO of Brown-Forman Corp., has been elected to the Macys Inc. board of directors.

Varga is a dynamic business leader and strategic thinker with an impressive track record in building and marketing global brands, said Terry Lundgren, Macys Inc. chairman, president and CEO. He will be an important addition to our board as we continue to develop Macy's and Bloomingdales as distinct brands and destinations for shoppers domestically and internationally. Given that Paul began with Brown-Forman as a summer intern and worked his way up the organization's ranks, he also is an advocate for strong management development environments, which is a hallmark of Macys Inc.

The addition of Varga brings the size of Macys Inc.s board of directors to 11 members. It will return to 10 members after the annual meeting of shareholders on May 18, when Joseph Pichler, former chairman of The Kroger Company, retires from the board after more than 14 years of service.

Varga was named president and chief executive officer of Brown-Forman, one of the world's 10 largest wine and spirits producers, in August 2005 and became chairman of the company in August 2007. He has been a member of Brown-Formans board of directors since 2003.

Varga joined Brown-Forman in 1986 as a summer intern. He was promoted to a variety of positions within the corporation, ranging from on-premise marketing to managing the Jack Daniel's brand. He was promoted to senior vice president and chief marketing officer in 2000. Prior to becoming chief executive officer of the corporation, Varga served as president and chief executive officer of the company's Brown-Forman Beverages subsidiary.

Varga earned his bachelor's of business administration degree in finance from the University of Kentucky in 1985, and his MBA from Purdue University in 1987.