Mattel hands Kreiz CEO role

US toy giant Mattel has named former Maker Studios and Endemol Group boss Ynon Kreiz as its CEO following Margo Georgiadis’s decision to step down.

Ynon Kreiz

Kreiz, who is already due to become chairman of the toy giant on May 17, will now also become CEO on April 26.

Georgiadis, who became Mattel’s CEO in February 2017, is leaving to become CEO at consumer genomics company Ancestry but will serve in an advisory role at Mattel until May 10.

In the role of chairman, Kreiz succeeds Christopher A Sinclair, the executive chairman and former CEO of Mattel who last year announced his intention to retire in May 2018.

Kreiz has been a director of Mattel since June 2017 and has more than two decades of experience in the media and entertainment industries, having previously served as chairman and CEO of Maker, which was acquired by Disney in 2014.

He left in late 2015 having joined Maker in June 2012 as chairman. Before that he was CEO and chairman of Endemol Group and co-founder, chairman and CEO of pay TV network Fox Kids Europe, which was acquired by Disney in 2001.

Kreiz also serves on the board of directors at Warner Music Group and is a member of the board of advisors of the UCLA Anderson School of Management.

Mattel Creations, Mattel’s content division, develops content based on the toymaker’s brands, which include American Girl, Barbie, Fisher-Price, Hot Wheels and Thomas & Friends.

“Ynon has tremendous expertise across areas critical to our strategy, including digital, media and entertainment, and we have already benefitted from that experience and his compelling vision for the company since he became a director,” said Sinclair.

“While the company has been facing significant challenges, we have achieved constructive progress in many key areas. I am committed to building on our existing strategy as we continue to aggressively implement our transformation plan,” added Kreiz.