Pure Fishing, the world's largest fishing tackle manufacturer which boasts brands like Berkley, Abu Garcia, Penn and Shakespeare among its portfolio, has a new chief executive officer who possesses years of experience in the consumer products sector.
Neil Eibeler, who has 16 years of management experience with Newell Brands, has been tapped to replace outgoing Pure Fishing CEO John Doerr, who will depart at the end of June.
Eibeler has been president of Irwin Tools since 2001, president of Rubbermaid Commercial Products (RCP) since 2010 and his role as president of professional segments for the last 20 months carries responsibility for global businesses including Lenox, Hilmore, Rubbermaid Commercial and Irwin.
Prior to that, Eibeler was vice president at Krups Appliances for four years and spent 13 years as a director at Black and Decker.
A year ago Mike Polk, CEO of Newell Brands, announced that it intended to sell off some of Jarden’s product lines, but singled out Pure Fishing as one of its most promising sporting brands.
Describing the tackle manufacturer as having amazing potential, he added: “It is a great business and the Pure Fishing team is really adept at driving consumption.”
The tackle giant changed hands in December 2015 when then owner, the Jarden Corporation, was acquired by Newell for a reported $13 billion. However, late last year, Newell began making sweeping changes at Pure Fishing, eliminating the marketing staff and severing ties with a public relations firm that had handled all of the Pure Fishing brands.
In addition, several pro staffers' contracts were not renewed.
