Wurtz Retires as Soundview President, CEO

 

Tissue producer Soundview Paper Co., Elmwood Park, N.J., USA, reports that George Wurtz (photo) has retired as president and CEO. Wurtz will continue to be engaged with Soundview as its chairman and as a significant investor. Wurtz will be succeeded as president by Karl Meyers, who has served as COO of Soundview’s Away-From-Home Division for the past year, and brings decades of experience in the pulp and paper industry to the position. Meyers and Wurtz were two of the original industry leaders who started Soundview.

Under Wurtz’s leadership, Soundview increased its sales of converted products by revitalizing the Marcal Brand, penetrating new channels of distribution, improving product quality, and —through the acquisition of Vermont-based Putney Paper— entered the away-from-home business.

Tim Fazio, co-founder and managing partner of Atlas Holdings LLC, which owns Soundview Paper, said that "George Wurtz partnered with us to found Soundview Paper and immediately spearheaded the successful turnaround of a vital consumer products business. From ensuring strong labor-management relations to developing an exciting array of products to meet our customers’ needs, George honored the legacy of the Marcal name at every turn and set us on the right course for the future. We thank George for his contributions as president and CEO and look forward to his continued service as a member of the Soundview board of directors."

Prior to joining Soundview, Meyers served as a senior executive for Georgia Pacific Corp. from 1997 to 2009. In that role, he helped to lead manufacturing operations in Oklahoma, North Carolina, and Toluca, Mexico. Prior to that, Meyers spent 16 years working in a variety of leadership posts within Fort James and Fort Howard Corp.