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Home > BizTimes Daily > Archives > May 6, 2008
Great Wolf CEO to resign as pressure mounts
Published May 6, 2008 - BizTimes Daily
As the losses continue to pile up for Great Wolf Resorts Inc., the Madison-based developer of indoor waterpark resorts, the company announced today that John Emery will resign as chief executive officer and a director of the firm.
The announcement was made near the bottom of a press release about the company's quarterly earnings. Great Wolf lost $2.3 million in the first quarter.
Emery will resign rather than face a contested board election at Great Wolf's annual meeting on Wednesday, May 28. The company is facing increasing pressure from Hovde Capital Advisors LLC, which controls a 5.6-percent stake in Great Wolf.
Emery said he is leaving the company to pursue an opportunity in the private equity sector that will allow him to spend the majority of his time at his home in Virginia after more than four years of weekly commuting between Virginia and Great Wolf's headquarters in Madison.
"With the company’s continued strong operating results and the recent successful resort openings, I am comfortable choosing this time to make my transition," Emery said. "We have a strong management team in place, headed up by Kim Schaefer, our chief operating officer; Jim Calder, our chief financial officer; and Hernan Martinez, our president of development."
Great Wolf said its board will appoint Randy Churchey, a director of the company, as interim CEO.
Great Wolf board chairman Joe Vittoria said, "We thank John for his more than four years of leadership and service to the company and wish him the best of luck in all his future endeavors. Randy has been a director of the company since our IPO in 2004 and has extensive public company experience, formerly serving as president and chief executive officer of RFS Hotel Investors Inc. We believe Randy will provide solid leadership on an interim basis as we begin our search for a permanent chief executive officer.”
