New CEO for MediaBay
by Staff -- Publishers Weekly, 1/19/2004
Carl Wolf, chairman of MediaBay, has been named interim CEO of the company, following the departure of Ron Celmer, who resigned "to pursue other opportunities." Celmer was brought in last summer to help turn around MediaBay and said he felt it was time to leave because the turnaround was underway. Wolf will serve as CEO until a successor is found.
Coinciding with Wolf's appointment, MediaBay announced a number of initiatives intended to grow sales and earnings in 2004. According to Wolf, MediaBay will increase its distribution channels, expand its product offerings and increase sales per customer. New products will be developed internally and "possibly through strategic acquisitions of direct marketing and consumer goods companies." Wolf said.
Among the new distribution channels MediaBay is exploring are drugstores, gift and specialty stores and specialty catalogues. The company has already signed a new distribution agreement that it expects to increase sales of its spoken-word audio products through independent booksellers. Other outlets MediaBay may test include truck stops and airport kiosks. Expansion over the Internet, perhaps using MP3 players and iPods, is also in the works, Wolf said.
In addition to boosting sales, MediaBay has begun implementing a number of initiatives aimed at saving the company about $1.4 million annually. Among the actions taken are moving its production offshore and changing the way it processes returns.
The company said it expects the results of its various actions to produce results beginning in this year's third quarter.
