Blockbuster Appoints Former 7-Eleven CEO James W. Keyes Chairman and CEO

By: Blockbuster Video | 1,021 Shares 196 Reads

DALLAS, July 2 // PRNewswire-FirstCall // -- Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI)(NYSE: BBI.B) today announced the appointment of James W. Keyes as the company's new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer effective today. Keyes is the former president and CEO of 7-Eleven Inc. and a 21-year veteran of the world's largest chain of convenience stores. He replaces current Chairman and CEO John F. Antioco, who will be assisting with an orderly corporate transition.

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Under Keyes' leadership as president and CEO of 7-Eleven from 2000 to 2005, the company experienced record sales and profits and implemented new retail systems technology that improved product assortment decisions in every store. He also ushered in a new era for 7-Eleven through the introduction of a host of new electronic services, which helped the convenience-store chain become as well known for its cutting-edge use of technology as for Slurpees®. Additionally, he collaborated with manufacturers across all merchandise categories to develop new products, enabling the company to introduce as many as 50 new items each week in advance of the competition. When Keyes retired upon the sale of the company in 2005, 7-Eleven had produced 36 consecutive quarters of same-store sales increases and had some 6,000 franchised and company-owned stores in the U.S. and Canada with 30,000 stores worldwide.

"Jim is results-oriented, strategic and able to identify practical, yet highly creative solutions to complicated business problems. Most importantly, he has a strong multi-unit retailing background and an impressive record of introducing new customer-focused technologies into a business that have driven financial results," said Carl C. Icahn, a member of the Blockbuster Board of Directors. "With his extensive background in finance, operations and marketing, and as a former CEO of a Fortune 500 company, he is exactly the right person to become the next leader of Blockbuster. The rest of the board and I are extremely pleased to welcome Jim to the company."

"We also want to express our appreciation to John Antioco for his years of service to Blockbuster," Icahn continued. "Thanks to John's leadership over the past decade, Blockbuster has transformed itself numerous times, and I believe the initiative he most recently helped put in place, namely BLOCKBUSTER Total Access™, should help position the company for future growth. All of us wish John well in his future endeavors."

"Blockbuster has a world-class brand and is a highly regarded leader in the home entertainment industry," said Jim Keyes. "I look forward to the opportunity to work with the Blockbuster team to better serve our customers and to position Blockbuster for profitable growth and an even stronger future."

Keyes graduated cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a Bachelors degree from the College of the Holy Cross in Massachusetts and earned an MBA from Columbia University. From 1980 to 1985, he worked for Gulf Oil and in 1985 joined CITGO Petroleum, which was then a subsidiary of 7-Eleven Inc. Keyes served in a variety of positions with 7-Eleven, including chief financial officer, executive vice president and chief operating officer, and in 2000 was named president and CEO of 7-Eleven Inc.

Keyes serves on numerous civic boards, including the national board of governors of the American Red Cross, the Dallas Center for Performing Arts, the Cooper Institute and the SMU/Cox School of Business. A recipient of the Horatio Alger Award in 2005, Keyes was also the founder of the Education is Freedom foundation, which provides college scholarships for hard-working young students. Jim and his wife of 17 years, Margo Bernadette Keyes, reside in Dallas.

About Blockbuster

Blockbuster Inc. (NYSE: BBI)(NYSE: BBI.B) is a leading global provider of in-home movie and game entertainment, with more than 8,000 stores throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia and Australia.