FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For
more information, please contact
Jessica Clark
VisionWeb
(512) 241-8561
Former Vistakon Executive Becomes New
VisionWeb CEO
VisionWeb CEO Jacques
Stoerr Retires
Austin, Texas - July
15, 2003 - VisionWeb, L.P., the Internet service to help eyecare providers
streamline and simplify their practice, announced today that its chief
executive officer Jacques Stoerr is retiring.
Current VisionWeb chief operating officer and former executive of
Vistakon, a division of Johnson & Johnson Vision Care, Inc., Jeffrey B.
Saddington, has moved into the position of chief executive. Saddington
officially takes over the position of CEO on July 15, 2003. Stoerr will remain
closely involved with VisionWeb as a member of the board of directors, and he
will be available as an advisor to the VisionWeb executive team.
"The past year of working
with VisionWeb as CEO has been an exciting one," said Stoerr. "There is a great
team here, and I will miss them. I am looking forward to returning to my position
as a general member of the VisionWeb board of directors. I welcome Jeff to the new position, and I am
confident that he will be successful in leading VisionWeb into the future."
Stoerr, whose contributions
to the eyecare industry span four decades, came out of retirement in June 2002
to help set the direction of VisionWeb by serving as CEO for a one-year
term. VisionWeb has achieved many
milestones under his leadership including increasing the VisionWeb membership
from several hundred to more than 5,000 eyecare providers, and bringing the
American Optometric Association, a leading industry professional association,
to VisionWeb as an equity affiliate.
"I am honored to step into the position of CEO at VisionWeb," said
Saddington. "Jacques has worked
tirelessly over the past year to help propel VisionWeb into a position to truly
help eyecare professionals prepare their practices for the future. I am looking forward to the challenge of
continuing in this direction, and I am excited to continue working with Jacques
in his role as a VisionWeb board member."
Saddington has served as VisionWeb's COO since August
2002. He came to VisionWeb following 30
years at Johnson & Johnson where he held multiple positions in operations,
sales and marketing, including vice president of operations worldwide for
Vistakon. Saddington previously served
as a member of the Global Franchise Team for Vistakon, where he oversaw the
production of all Vistakon soft disposable contact lenses, and had
responsibility for the products' distribution, facilities, optical tooling and
engineering functions.
In addition, while at Johnson & Johnson, Saddington
served as a member of the management board of Johnson & Johnson Medical K.
K. in Japan in the mid-90's, where he was responsible for building a
multi-divisional approach to the medical device business.
Saddington holds a B.S. in Commerce and Engineering Sciences
from Drexel University in Philadelphia, where he later earned his MBA
degree. He has been active in
philanthropic causes, most recently as a member of the board of directors of
the I. M. Sulzbacher Center for the Homeless in Jacksonville, Fla. Saddington is married with five children and
resides in Jacksonville.
ABOUT VISIONWEB
Headquartered in Austin,
Texas, VisionWeb, L.P. is the premier Internet-based service to help eyecare
providers simplify and streamline their practices. VisionWeb offers convenient and direct-to-supplier online ordering;
customizable Web sites for eyecare practices; one-stop access to ophthalmic
clinical news and information pooled from 1,200 publications worldwide; and
other benefits for opticians, optometrists, ophthalmologists, optical
manufacturers, laboratories, distributors, and patients. For more information or to register for
VisionWeb, please visit www.visionweb.com.
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