Southampton, England, March 19, 2013—Global contact lens manufacturer, CooperVision, is delighted to announce two new appointments at its Hampshire based European headquarters to further strengthen the level of practitioner support and focus provided across Europe. Debbie Olive joins as Vice President of Marketing for Europe, along with Dimple Shah as Professional Affairs & Relations Consultant with immediate effect.
Previously Director of Marketing at Alcon – CIBA Vision, Debbie comes equipped with a broad range of experience across high profile retail and FMCG brands, including Kraft Jacob Suchard, William Grant & Sons and Marks & Spencer. In her new position, Debbie will bring her vast retail and optical experience to the role in order to further grow the contact lens opportunity through enhancing the CooperVision principle of putting eye care practitioners at the core of all thinking.
Commenting on her appointment, Debbie said: “I am really excited about the terrific prospects both CooperVision and the contact lens industry as a whole have available to them. Thanks to the company’s strong innovation pipeline and trusted relationship with practitioners, there’s a fantastic opportunity to bring the advantages of contact-lens wear to even more people.”
She added: “Like any organisation, people are its lifeblood and I’ve been overwhelmed by the friendly, customer-focused approach of everyone I’ve met. It holds true to CooperVision’s values, sets it apart and isn’t something you may ordinarily equate to a company of its size.”
Debbie replaces Michael Wilkinson, who has now taken up the role of General Manager for a new operational region, including India, Pakistan, the Middle East, Turkey, Russia and Africa.
With a degree in Optometry and Vision Sciences, Dimple Shah will be responsible for providing practitioners with the foundation to benefit from real business and clinical advantages, focusing on developing CooperVision’s European training programme, both internally and externally. Due to Dimple’s extensive background within the contact lens industry, including both her previous manufacturer and in-practice experience, she offers a truly valuable insight into the needs and requirements of both practitioners and their patients.
Mark Harty, European President at CooperVision commented: “2013 is an exciting year for CooperVision as we look to increase the level of marketing support provided to our customers. We are absolutely delighted to add both Debbie and Dimple to the team, and with their combined experience and track record in strategic marketing, we look forward to sharing the benefits of their expertise with customers and their patients.”
About CooperVision
CooperVision, a unit of The Cooper Companies, Inc. [NYSE: COO], is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of soft contact lenses. Dedicated to continually bringing a fresh perspective to the contact lens experience for practitioners and patients, CooperVision specialises in lenses for astigmatism, presbyopia, and ocular dryness. The company routinely collaborates with eye-care professionals in the research and development of relevant products. CooperVision manufactures a full array of monthly and daily disposable contact lenses featuring advanced materials and optics. For more information, visit www.coopervision.com.
Contact lenses are medical devices and can only be prescribed and dispensed by a licensed eye care professional.
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 crafting 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 over 7,500 employees with products sold in over 100 countries. For more information, please visit www.coopercos.com.