Lindner to Chair NEW Board

The Network of Executive Women, Consumer Products and Retail Industry has elected Chicago-area resident Catherine Lindner, former vice president of retail marketing for Walgreen Co., to chair its board.

Lindner (pictured at left) was elected at the annual members meeting at the NEW Leadership Summit this week in Dallas. Annie Zipfel, division VP of customer marketing for Kent, Wash.-based REI, was elected board vice chair. Zipfel most recently served as NEW's chair for marketing and communications.

“Catherine Linder’s experience as a senior leader in one of the most successful retail companies and previous roles working with the industry’s largest consumer products companies will help take NEW to the next level,” said NEW president and CEO Joan Toth. “Her passion and enthusiasm for developing women leaders and keen dedication to our mission to recruit, retain and advance women in the consumer products and retail industry is absolute.”

At Deerfield, Ill.-based Walgreen Co., Lindner was responsible for marketing strategy, planning and execution for the $22 billion retail business. A founder of NEW Chicago, Lindner joined Walgreens in 1999 as category manager for the hair care category and served in roles of increasing responsibility. Before joining Walgreens, she spent 11 years at Information Resources Inc., holding several positions in marketing mix modeling, client services and category management consulting.

At REI, Zipfel is responsible for customer insights, marketing planning, acquisition and retention initiatives, across all channels. She previously served as VP of owned brands for Target Corp.  Zipfel’s experience in consumer products brand management and retail includes a stint at General Mills.

NEW has more than 6,700 members from more than 400 companies and 80 corporate sponsors in 19 regions in the United States and Canada.