PLEASANTON, Calif., July 7, 2015—CooperVision, Inc. announced today that eye health industry veteran Guy Whittaker has been appointed Vice President, Global Marketing. He is responsible for advancing the company’s master and product brands, marketing its comprehensive range of contacts lens products and services, and strengthening its reputation worldwide in collaboration with its customers.
Mr. Whittaker, a former practicing optometrist, has held management roles with CooperVision since 1998. Most recently he was General Manager, Australia/New Zealand & Southeast Asia, and Vice President, Strategy, Asia-Pacific, where he stimulated company and customer growth substantially above market rates. Prior, he held positions as Vice President, Marketing, Asia-Pacific; Director of Global Marketing with responsibility for the launch of the Biofinity® brand; and Director of European Marketing.
Earlier in his career, he led European Professional Services for the former Essilor and Ocular Sciences organizations since acquired by CooperVision. He was also at the heart of significant growth at contact lens practices in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and helped establish the first laser refractive surgery center in Scotland.
“With CooperVision continuing to outpace market growth, and as we further expand the world’s broadest range of soft contact lens products and services, it’s critical that we have leaders who embrace what’s needed to make the most of this momentum,” said Andrew Sedgwick, Executive Vice President of Commercial Strategy and Business Development, CooperVision. “Guy’s success in our high growth Asia-Pacific markets, coupled with his understanding as an optometrist about how to best partner with our customers, will be advantageous to CooperVision and the entire industry.”
Mr. Whittaker holds a BSc (Hons) in Optometry from the University of Wales in Cardiff, and a MBA from Durham University Business School in Durham, England. He is based at CooperVision’s headquarters in Pleasanton, Calif.
Mr. Whittaker was named to the role following the recent promotion of his predecessor, Jerry Warner, to President, North America.
About CooperVision
CooperVision, a unit of The Cooper Companies, Inc. (NYSE:COO), is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of soft contact lenses and related products and services. The Company produces a full array of monthly, two-week and daily disposable contact lenses, all featuring advanced materials and optics. CooperVision has a strong heritage of solving the toughest vision challenges such as astigmatism and presbyopia; and offers the most complete collection of spherical, toric and multifocal products available. Through a combination of innovative products and focused practitioner support, the company brings a refreshing perspective to the marketplace, creating real advantages for customers and wearers. For more information, visit www.coopervision.com.
About The Cooper Companies
The Cooper Companies, Inc. ("Cooper") is a global medical device company publicly traded on the NYSE Euronext (NYSE:COO). Cooper is dedicated to being A Quality of Life Company™ with a focus on delivering shareholder value. Cooper operates through two business units, CooperVision and CooperSurgical. CooperVision brings a refreshing perspective on vision care with a commitment to developing a wide range of high-quality products for contact lens wearers and providing focused practitioner support. CooperSurgical focuses on supplying women's health clinicians with market leading products and treatment options to improve the delivery of healthcare to women. Headquartered in Pleasanton, CA, Cooper has close to 10,000 employees with products sold in over 100 countries. For more information, please visit www.coopercos.com.
Media Contact
Heather Kowalczyk, McDougall Communications for CooperVision, Inc.
heather@mcdougallpr.com or +1-585-330-4878