A.R.E. Elects New Officers, Adds New Board Members

Hollywood, FL — The Association for Retail Environments (A.R.E.), the international not-for-profit trade organization representing the retail environments industry, has elected three new officers and added three new board members. The election was held during A.R.E.’s annual meeting on Thursday, Nov. 6, in Carlsbad, Calif. The A.R.E. Board is comprised of A.R.E. members who volunteer their time to lead the organization.

NEW OFFICERS

A.R.E. elected Bob Rosean as its new president. Rosean is owner and CEO of Milwaukee, Wis.-based T.J. Hale, which he purchased in 2008. Prior to that, he was president of Alu Inc. in New York and vice president of marketing and sales for Reebok International’s golf division from 2001 to 2002 and Sara Lee Corp. and Coach prior to that. He has served as president of the National Association of Display Industries, now part of A.R.E., and is an emeritus board member for PAVE. Rosean has been an A.R.E. board member since 2010.

Joel Katterhagen was elected vice president. Katterhagen is president of Synsor Corp. based in Everett, Wash. Prior to joining Synsor in 2012, Katterhagen spent nine years at Leggett & Platt as executive vice president of sales and marketing. He has also held executive positions with Hamilton Fixture and Ross Display. He has more than two decades of sales management experience in manufacturing and the fixture industry and has been an A.R.E. Board Member since 2011.

Steve Varon has been named the new treasurer. He is CEO for Elmhurst, Ill.-based Crown Metal Manufacturing, a company he has worked for since 1987. Prior to Crown Metal, Varon worked at Frito-Lay in Beloit, Wis. from 1986 to 1987. Varon previously served as the chair of A.R.E.’s Manufacturing Seminar Committee.

NEW DIRECTORS

Eric Jones is vice president of J.R. Jones Fixture Company, a manufacturer of high-end specialty retail store fixtures based in Minneapolis, Minn. The company specializes in producing high-quality custom architectural millwork, casework and store fixtures. Jones is the third generation to work at the family-owned business started in 1944. He most recently has served on A.R.E.’s General Management and Summit Committees.

Charles Sparks is CEO, president and corporate creative director for Charles Sparks + Company based in Westchester, Ill. The company is a leading design and consulting firm specializing in retail store design and planning. Sparks has nearly 40 years of experience in consumer products, architecture and interior design. His work is represented throughout North America, the United Kingdom, China, Australia, New Zealand and Malaysia. He has received more than 40 national and international design awards for his work.

Christine Taylor is founder and CEO of Christine Taylor Collection (CTC), a Certified Woman-Owned Business established in 1990 to provide visual merchandising solutions to retailers. Based in Doylestown, Penn., the company designs retail spaces that incite emotion, stimulate the senses and move consumers to purchase. Taylor is also CEO for Hong Kong-based Christine Taylor Asia (CTA), which manages CTC’s offshore manufacturing. Taylor has been active in the retail environments industry for the past 25 years and has been a long-time supporter of PAVE.

Outgoing board members include:

Bob Riley, DSA Phototech, past president since 2012

Dean Rubin, Rose Displays, treasurer since 2012 and a board member before that

Kevin Hogan, Stylmark, board member since 2011

Bill McHenry, Elevations, board member since 2011

“I would like to welcome all of our new board members and say thank you to those who served and are now stepping down,” said A.R.E. Executive Director Todd Dittman. “I would especially like to thank our outgoing president Alan Harvill for his leadership and passion for the organization. This group of people played a pivotal role this past year guiding A.R.E. and giving us a clear roadmap for 2015.”

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