Peter Shyne, a visual merchandising executive on two continents for nearly 50 years, passed away in October. He was 77 and lived in Huntington Beach, Calif.
Born in Philadelphia, Shyne studied at the Philadelphia College of Art and the Hessian School of Art in Philadelphia before beginning his career as display manager of Lit Brothers in Upper Darby, Pa. He subsequently served as display director of Gimbel Bros. Department Stores in Philadelphia and New York, and as Gimbel's director of special promotions and events before, in 1972, moving to the West Coast as vp, visual merchandising presentation, for Robinsons-May, a post he held for 16 years.
As vp of Retail Partners Services, he went to Chile in 1994 as a consultant to the Falabella Department Store chain. His work there attracted the attention of a rival Chilean retail organization, Almacenas Paris, which hired him as visual merchandise presentation director, a job he held for nearly 10 years.
He is survived by his wife, Debbie, three daughters and five grandchildren.