There were many rumours circulating about Jim Estill’s new destination. Even though he told CDN in a special two-part video interview that he was going to another distributor some in the channel believed Estill was destined for something more higher profile. In the end, Estill, a 30-year veteran of IT distribution chose Nu Horizons Electronics Corp. (Nasdaq:NUHC) as his next challenge.
Nu Horizons of Melville, N.Y., is a global distributor of advanced technology semiconductor, display, illumination, power and system solutions.
Estill will be the company’s president and CEO starting in June.
As of that date, Arthur Nadata, currently the company’s chairman and CEO, will serve as the company’s executive chairman and Richard Schuster, currently the company’s president and COO, will serve as senior executive vice president and remain as COO. Nadata said he was pleased that Estill has agreed to join the company after a long search for a new CEO.
“We believe that Jim’s prior experience as president and CEO of Synnex Canada, a company with over $1 billion in annual sales, together with his experience as a founder of EMJ Data Systems Ltd., which he grew to over $300 million in revenue before its sale to Synnex, will enable Nu Horizons to improve significantly its position as a leading demand creation distributor in the electronics distribution marketplace,” he said.
“Both Richard Schuster and I will continue to be involved in, and remain committed to, Nu Horizons, a company which we founded in 1982 and have grown to almost $750 million in sales. Nevertheless, recognizing that a fresh perspective would be invaluable in this challenging economic environment, as well as assist the company’s board of directors in its succession planning, we started a search for someone who ideally would have both an entrepreneurial background and the ability to manage a large organization.”
Nu Horizons believes that by adding Estill to its existing management team, the company will be able to continue to build on its competitive position in the global marketplace and come through these difficult economic times as a stronger company.
In connection with Estill’s employment as president and CEO, he will be granted 360,000 inducement stock options. The stock options will have an exercise price equal to the greater of $2.00 per share or the closing stock price on the trading day preceding the effective date of his employment; a term of 10 years from the date of grant; and will vest in three traunches of 120,000 shares depending on the duration of Estill’s employment and the achievement of a targeted stock price. However, all of the stock options will automatically become fully exercisable in the event of a sale or change of control of the company and will become fully-vested on the ninth anniversary of the date of grant provided that Estill is still employed by the Nu Horizons on such date.
Nu Horizons also serves Electronic Manufacturing Services providers (EMS).
The company has sales facilities in 54 locations across North America, Europe and Asia along with regional logistics centres. Nu Horizons’s strategy is to partner with a limited number of suppliers to provide in-depth product development, custom logistics and life-cycle support to its customers.