M. Jack Sanders to Become CEO of Sonoco

Sonoco

announced today that M. Jack Sanders will become president and chief executive officer of the Company, effective April 1, 2013, when Harris E. DeLoach Jr., retires as an active employee after more than 27 years with Sonoco. Sanders also was elected to Sonoco's Board of Directors, effective immediately, increasing the board to 13 members. Sanders, 59, is currently president and chief operating officer of Sonoco and has global leadership, sales and operating responsibility for all of the Company's diversified packaging businesses. DeLoach, 68, is currently chairman and chief executive officer and has served as CEO since July 2000. He has been a member of Sonoco's Board of Directors since 1998 and chairman of the Board of Directors since 2005 and will remain its executive chairman following his retirement on March 31, 2013. "During his 25-year career with Sonoco, Jack has played an integral role in helping to grow the Company and successfully led many of our Consumer, Industrial and Protective packaging businesses," said DeLoach. "Jack is an extremely talented leader who has proven that he's ready to serve as Sonoco's eighth CEO over our 113-year history." A graduate of Louisiana State University with a Bachelor of Science in finance, Sanders joined Sonoco in 1988 as national sales and marketing manager for the Company's Reels business. In 1992, he was asked to build and lead the development of Sonoco's new Protective Packaging business as its general manager. He was promoted in 1998 to division vice president and general manager of Protective Packaging. Sanders was elected a corporate officer and named vice president, Industrial Products, North America, in 2001. He was subsequently named vice president, Global Industrial products in January 2006 and assumed responsibility for all industrial converting businesses as senior vice president in July 2007. In 2008, Sanders was named executive vice president, Industrial, with global operating responsibility for all of the Company's businesses serving industrial markets, including Sonoco's tubes and cores, paper, reels, protective packaging, paperboard specialties and recycling businesses. Prior to assuming his current position, Sanders served as the executive vice president of Sonoco's Global Consumer businesses, where he was responsible for Rigid Paper and Closures, Rigid Plastics, Flexible Packaging and Display and Packaging. During DeLoach's 12 years as CEO, Sonoco has grown sales from $2.7 billion to a projected $4.75 billion at the end of 2012, while its asset base has nearly doubled to more than $4 billion. Also during his tenure, the Company has returned approximately $1.6 billion to shareholders in cash dividends and share repurchases and it has provided a total shareholder return of approximately 153 percent through Oct. 31, 2012. While serving as CEO, Sonoco made more than 50 acquisitions and the Company was transformed from primarily a company serving industrial packaging markets to a diversified global consumer, industrial and protective packaging company.