| F. Peter Cuneo | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alameda, California |
| Education | MBA |
| Alma mater | Alfred University Harvard Business School |
| Board member of | Alfred University, Iconix Brands, others |
Peter Cuneo was born during WWII at Alameda Naval Air Station in California where his father was a Navy pilot. His family followed his father through numerous military assignments associated with World War II and the Korean War. Before age 10, he lived in Pensacola, Florida; Seattle, Washington; San Diego, California; and Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
Cuneo’s family settled in Queens, New York in the 1950s. His father eventually retired as a lieutenant in the New York City Fire Department. His mother was an EMT emergency medical technician in New York.
Cuneo entered Alfred University in 1961 and initially was not a good student. During a leave of absence from Alfred, he resolved to “get serious” about academics and subsequently earned several dean’s list distinctions. He graduated in 1967 with a B.S. degree in Glass Science (Ceramic Engineering).
After a year working as a quality control engineer for Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation, Cuneo entered the U.S. Navy – graduating with honors from Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. He served for three years on the USS Joseph Strauss, a guided missile destroyer, as Damage Control Officer and as Communications Officer. The Strauss participated in several war cruises during the Vietnam War and Cuneo was decorated for service in that conflict.[1]
After the Navy, Peter enrolled at Harvard Business School. He was awarded academic honors and was President of the International Business Club. He graduated with an MBA in 1973.
His corporate career started at W.R. Grace in financial and strategy assignments. He then spent almost 15 years at Bristol-Myers Squibb. Cuneo accomplished his first business turnaround in the early 1980s while President of Clairol’s Personal Care Division which was owned by Bristol-Myers. Later, he was President of Bristol-Myers Pharmaceutical Group in Canada as well as Chairman of the Canadian Infant Formula Association and a member of the Board of the Canadian Pharmaceutical Manufacturers Association.
In the early 1990s, he moved to Black & Decker Corporation as President of the Security Hardware Group, responsible for six businesses around the world with sales in excess of $500 million. During his tenure, turnarounds of distressed businesses were accomplished in Italy, Germany and the United States.
Cuneo then became President and eventually CEO of Remington Products. The company, known for its electric shavers, was on the verge of bankruptcy. Cuneo accomplished a historic turnaround that included purchasing the personal care business from Clairol and merging it into Remington. After a four year turnaround, the company was sold to a leverage buyout firm.
He joined Marvel Entertainment as Chief Executive Officer in 1999, immediately after it emerged from bankruptcy. This was his seventh turnaround effort – all have been in media intensive consumer product companies with globally known brand names and quality reputations.
Cuneo completing a successful multiyear turnaround of Marvel as CEO, returning the company to a leadership position in the entertainment industry.[2] Cuneo then became Vice Chairman of the company's Board of Directors where he served until Marvel's sale to Disney at the end of 2009. Since 1999, Marvel’s stock price had risen from a low of $.96 to over $50.00 per share. In December, 2009, the Walt Disney Company purchased Marvel for over $4 billion.[3][4][5]
Peter is currently Managing Principal of Cuneo & Company., LLC., a private investment and management company. He has served on the Board of Directors of a number of companies including Waterpik, Inc., a New York Stock Exchange company where he was Chairman of the Audit Committee, Iconix Brand Group, Inc., a publicly traded licensing and brand management company which owns and licenses iconic apparel brand names, Marvel Entertainment Inc., Remington Products Company among others.
He is also Chairman of the Alfred University Board of Trustees.[6][7] and on the Board of the National Archives in Washington, D.C.
Peter has served as a Senior Advisor to several investment funds on consumer and media oriented businesses.
Cuneo has been a regular keynote speaker on turnaround leadership, including talks at the Conference Board,[8] Harvard Business School, Wharton, Columbia, USC, University of Texas, Peking University (Beijing) and at several MBA programs in Europe.
Peter and his wife Maris live in Connecticut. They have two children.
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