Blockbuster (BBI) announced Monday that it has installed former 7-Eleven CEO James Keyes and the new chairman and CEO of the company, replacing John Antioco, effective immediately.
If Keyes can transfer his success with 7-Eleven to Blockbuster, they'll be in for some great success, as Keyes helped elevate the sales and profits at the convenience store to record levels from 2000-2005.
Another strong aspect of Keyes' leadership has been mining information in a way that he could recognize new products before his competition could; something Blockbuster needs in competing with Netflix (NFLX) and other emerging players in the field.
With the video rental category becoming a commodity, Blockbuster needs someone that can get ahead of the changes and become the market leader. Pricing alone can't win this battle, it'll only decrease margins, while not really adding value to the consumer.
"Jim is results-oriented, strategic and able to identify practical, yet highly creative solutions to complicated business problems," said Blockbuster's biggest activist shareholder and board member Carl Icahn. "Most importantly, he has a strong multi-unit retailing background and an impressive record of introducing new customer-focused technologies into a business that have driven financial results."
Icahn, while talking positive about the departure of Antioco, was a major reason in the change of leadership in the company.
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