Breen Retires as Chairman of S-W; Company Announces Product-Marketing Initiatives
CLEVELAND — John G. Breen retired as chairman of The Sherwin-Williams Co., concluding a 22-year tenure at the helm of the biggest U.S.-based coatings-manufacturing concern. The company’s board of directors elected Christopher M. Connor to succeed Breen as chairman. Connor was named CEO in October 1999, and retains that title. The board expressed its gratitude and appreciation to Breen for many years of “distinguished, invaluable and professional services to the company.”
Breen was named CEO in 1979 and presided over 22 consecutive years of earnings improvement. During that time, the market value of the company’s common stock multiplied 41 times, from $108 million to $4.4 billion. Breen remains a member of the company’s board of directors, and the company’s Cleveland Technical Center will be renamed the John G. Breen Technology Center in his honor.