Lake Forest-based Cooper Cos. has seen shipping delays, sluggish contact lens sales, buyout speculation and delays with a key product. The latest chapter for the contact lens maker: Its veteran chief executive plans to leave his post by the end of the year.
Last week, Cooper said A. Thomas Bender, who rose to the top in 1995, is stepping down. He’s set to have a continuing role at the company.
“It’s time for new management to step in,” Bender said. “It’s philosophical with me. I think a CEO can stay on a long time, but if you’re not a founder, typically the rules are five years is enough. I certainly have been here a lot longer than that.”
Bender said he’s “going to stay active in the company, but in a different role.”
Who will replace Bender as chief executive isn’t certain. One thing is clear: the next chief will be based out of Cooper’s Pleasanton offices, rather than Lake Forest, according to Bender.
That raises questions about whether Cooper, with a market value of $2 billion last week, will be an Orange County-based company anymore.
In Securities and Exchange Commission filings, it lists Pleasanton as its address. The company’s actual headquarters has been in Lake Forest, where Bender and other top officials were based.
For more on this story, see the April 9 issue of the Business Journal.
