CHARLOTTE, N.C., April 2 (UPI) -- Procter & Gamble Inc. supplier Polymer Group Inc. said it named the first woman of a top company in the disposable-fabric sector as its chief executive officer.
Veronica Hagen, 61, former president of the $1.4 billion Sappi Fine Paper North America unit of South Africa's Sappi Ltd., has been "highly successful in some very tough businesses -- businesses that are more mature than ours," strategic planning Vice President Dennis Norman told United Press International.
Hagen will also join the board of directors when she starts work April 23.
Her compensation will be released when her contract is filed Wednesday, Norman said.
Before working for Sappi, Hagen was the first female president of an Alcoa Inc. business unit. She began her career as an entrepreneur running her own metals-industry business.
Polymer Group is a $1 billion-plus company that makes disposable fabrics used in baby diapers, household wipes, medical garments and other products. Its largest customer -- Procter & Gamble, maker of Pampers diapers and Swiffer cleaning products -- accounts for about 14 percent of its business, Norman told UPI.
