Paul Pressler is the chair of the board of directors of

eBay eBay Inc. ( ) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that facilitates consumer-to-consumer and business-to-consumer sales through its website. eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar in 1995 and became ...

. He was previously CEO of

Gap, Inc. The Gap, Inc., commonly known as Gap Inc. or Gap (stylized as GAP), is an American worldwide clothing and accessories retailer. Gap was founded in 1969 by Donald Fisher and Doris F. Fisher and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. The ...

, chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts and a partner at the

private equity firm A private equity firm is an investment management company that provides financial backing and makes investments in the private equity of startup or operating companies through a variety of loosely affiliated investment strategies including lev ...

Clayton, Dubilier & Rice.

Early life and career

Pressler received his bachelor's degree in business economics from the

State University of New York The State University of New York (SUNY, , ) is a system of public colleges and universities in the State of New York. It is one of the largest comprehensive system of universities, colleges, and community colleges in the United States. Led by ...

at Oneonta. He was then hired as an urban planner in New York City. After six months he changed jobs to Remco Toys. In 1982, he was hired as vice president of designing and marketing development for Kenner-Parker Toys and was an executive producer of '' The Care Bears Movie''.

Disney

Following closure of his unit, Pressler took a product licensing post at Disney Consumer Products in 1987 and created a deal with Mattel for pre-school Disney toys which competed with Playskool and Fisher Price. Pressler was then selected as the head of

Disney Store The Disney Store is a chain of specialty stores selling only Disney related items, many of them exclusive, under its own name and Disney Outlet. It was a business unit of Disney Consumer Products with the Disney Parks, Experiences and Products s ...

. While running Disney Store, he brought together builders, designers, engineers and merchandisers to design the next prototype Disney Store that opened in third quarter of 1994. He used the "land" concept from the parks for the prototype to "make it more entertaining by utilizing more storytelling". In 1994, Pressler became the head executive of

Disneyland Disneyland is a theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney initially envisio ...

. During this period, Pressler was "credited with guiding the theme parks through tough times", but also known for cost-cutting measures such as reducing customer service training, having workers wash their own uniforms and closing rides and shows early. He attempted to discontinue a disabled discount but was forced to back down after a backlash. With the cost cutting, Disneyland was profitable while attendance declined. Pressler was promoted to president of Walt Disney Attractions in December 1998 under its chair, Judson Green. In 2000, he was promoted to chairman of Walt Disney Parks and Resorts (formerly Disney Attractions). With the retirement on December 31, 2000, of Disney's, vice chairman Sandy Litvack. Anaheim Sports began reporting to him. Pressler oversaw a major expansion, including the opening of the new California Adventure theme park, Disney's Grand Californian Hotel, the remodeling of the Disney's Paradise Pier Hotel, a new retail, dining and entertainment complex called

Downtown Disney Downtown Disney (officially the Downtown Disney District) is an outdoor shopping center located at the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California. It opened on January 12, 2001; a component of the Disneyland Resort expansion project alongside the ...

and a new multi-story parking area. The new park and hotels opened in early 2001, and the entire complex was named the

Disneyland Resort The Disneyland Resort, commonly known as Disneyland, is an entertainment resort in Anaheim, California. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through its Parks, Experiences and Products division and is home to two theme parks ...

CEO and board positions

Pressler became the chief executive at

Gap Inc. The Gap, Inc., commonly known as Gap Inc. or Gap (stylized as GAP), is an American worldwide clothing and accessories retailer. Gap was founded in 1969 by Donald Fisher and Doris F. Fisher and is headquartered in San Francisco, California. The c ...

in September 2002 after initially turning them down. Gap was struggling with an over-expansion of store locations. Pressler brought in several other Disney executives. In summer 2004, he had Gap launch a new chain,

Forth & Towne Forth & Towne is a defunct brand of clothing stores owned by Gap Inc., which owns Gap, Banana Republic, and Old Navy brands. It operated several test stores in the Chicago (Algonquin, Illinois; Aurora, Illinois; Skokie, Illinois; Schaumburg, I ...

. He resigned on January 22, 2007. Pressler was elected to the Avon board of directors on July 14, 2005. Pressler was chairman of David’s Bridal, Inc. from 2012 to 2018, AssuraMed Holding, Inc. from 2010 to 2013 and SiteOne Landscape Supply, Inc. from to 2013 to 2017. Pressler was appointed to the eBay board of directors on September 29, 2015. He was promoted chair of the board on June 29, 2020, following the resignation of Tom Tierney.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pressler, Paul Living people Walt Disney Parks and Resorts people Disney executives Private equity and venture capital investors Place of birth missing (living people) Year of birth missing (living people) American retail chief executives American chairpersons of corporations Directors of eBay Gap Inc. people