She’s a Jewel

Zale Corp. (Irving, Texas) has promoted acting ceo Betsy Burton to president and ceo.

Burton, who will continue as a member of the board of directors, has served as acting ceo since February 2006. Following a comprehensive search to identify highly qualified candidates for the position, the board said it reached the conclusion that “Burton is the ideal person to lead the company.

“Betsy has done a superb job running the company since February,” said chairman Richard Marcus. “Under her leadership, we are moving forward with a customer-centric strategy that leverages our fundamental strengths to regain market share, improve profitability and create value for shareholders. Betsy is an experienced executive with an outstanding record of leadership and a deep knowledge of Zale. Along with the strong management team we have put in place in recent months, Zale now has the right leadership to realize our long-term growth potential.”

“I'm excited about the opportunity to continue the work we've begun,” said Burton. “We've intensified our focus on enhancing the customer experience in our stores and giving our customers what we know they want — knowledgeable and friendly salespeople, a broad assortment of quality product and good value. We are also working hard to identify and implement new ways to improve productivity and profitability. Our strategy is in place, the team is in place, and I look forward to being part of our future success.”

Burton has been a Zale director since 2003. She had formerly served as ceo at Supercuts Inc. (Minneapolis), the haircut chain that is a division of Regis Corp. (Edina, Minn.).