Retired Campbell's CEO joins Avon board

NEW YORK — Avon Products announced that its board of directors elected Douglas Conant to the board, effective immediately.

Conant, 60, is the retired president and CEO of the Campbell Soup Company, where he served from 2001 to 2011 and led the company through a dramatic business transformation that generated quality sales growth, ten consecutive years of adjusted earnings per share growth, strong cash flow and record returns on invested capital. Prior to that, Conant served from 1992 to 2000 at Nabisco in a series of senior leadership positions, including president of Nabisco Foods Company from 1995 to 2000. Conant currently serves as the CEO of DRC LLC, a leadership consulting firm, which he founded in August 2011.

"We are pleased to welcome Doug to Avon's board of directors," said Andrea Jung, Avon's chairman and CEO. "With 35 years of experience, he has a track record of growing brands and companies, and his expertise in leading business transformation will be a valuable strategic asset to Avon as we move the business forward."

Conant holds both a Bachelor of Arts degree from Northwestern University and an MBA from the J.L. Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern.