B-M’S HEINONEN TO AVON
Burson-Marsteller’s Cheryl Heinonen moved toAvon Products Aug. 1 as group VP-global corporaterelations and chief communications officer.
She reports to CEO Sheri McCoy, who joined thestruggling cosmetics company in April from Johnson &Johnson. McCoy succeeded Andrea Jung.
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At B-M since 2008, Heinonen counseled consumer clients on branding, international and reputation issues.
Earlier, she was senior VP-global corporate PR at Visa International, where she managedPR for its restructuring and re-branding.
McCoy said in a statementthat Heinonen is a key addition to her team because Avon’s “abilityto communicate effectively, bothinternally and externally, is critical,” as it seeks a corporate turnaround. Avon’s first-half net tumbled 75 percentto $88.1M on a six percent sales decline to $5.1B.
The New York-based direct sales company hasopened negotiations with the Justice Dept. and Securities and Exchange Commission to iron out a settlement oncharges that it violated the Foreign Corrupt PracticesAct.
In May, Coty withdrew a bid to acquire $11B Avon.
BRUNSWICK EXEC MOUNTS BAIN DEFENSE
Michele Davis, the Bush administration Treasury Dept. public affairs advisor who joined BrunswickGroup in 2009, has been enlisted to bolster MittRomney’s PR defense of his tenure at Bain Capital, according to a report by Buzz Feed’s Ben Smith.
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Davis was assistant secretary of the Treasury for public affairs under Secretary HankPaulson during the outset of thefinancial crisis, her second stint in the post during the Bush administration. In between, she Davis was a VP for regulatory policy at Fannie Mae.
Davis is a partner at Brunswick in Washington,D.C., handling clients like BP.
Smith reported that Davis will help the Romneycampaign defend the candidate’s private sector work,which has been a point of attack for President Obama and Democrats.
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MDC SUFFERS $20M Q2 LOSS
MDC Partners suffered a $20.1M second-quarterloss compared to a year ago $1.3M profit. Revenueadvanced 15.2 percent to $274.1M. The firm lost $46.3M during the first-half, up from $7.3M a year ago.
Despite the gloomy financial performance, CEOMiles Nadal says MDC performed “very well” during the first-half and is on a “good trajectory” to achieveoverall financial 2012 targets.
Net new business wins soared 71 percent to $80M during the first-half. Nadal likes where MDC is headingfor the remainder of the year as he expects his strategicinvestments to show benefits.
MDC stock is trading at $9.40, near its $9.24 52week low. The NASDAQ-listed parent of Sloane & Coand Kwittken & Co. had traded as high as $20.21 during the last 52 weeks.
CHINA OIL BOLSTERS D.C. PUSH
China National Offshore Oil Corp., which is 70 percent owned by the Government of the People’s Republicof China, has tapped Wexler & Walker Public PolicyAssocs. to join sister WPP firm Hill+Knowlton Strategies as its D.C. lobbyist.
CNOOC is mounting its biggest bid to crack theNorth American market via its $15.1B bid to acquire Nexen Inc., one of Canada’s largest energy companies.
China’s potential ownership of Nexen properties inthe Gulf of Mexico is a major political concern here.
W&WPPA CEO Dale Snape, a 30-year veteran ofthe Office of Management and Budget, and chairmanBud Cramer, former Blue Dog Congressman for Alabama, spearhead the lobbying push.
They are joined by Robert Healy, former VP federal& int’l relations for ARCO and aide to Treasury Sec. Lloyd Bentsen; R.D. Folsom, who once lobbied for mostfavored trading status for China; Joel Malina, aide toRep. Nita Lowey (D-N.Y.) and Malcolm Grace, aide to Sheila Jackson Lee (D-Tex.).
The National Shooting Sports Foundation has hired insurance PR executive Mike Bazinet to represent its more than 7,000 gun makers, retailers, shootingranges and sportsmen’s groups.
He takes the director of public affairs slot handling communications with general news media and government relations.
The NSSF, which doesn’t have the high profile of the four million-member National Rifle Association, is closely aligned ideologically with the NRA.
Bazinet exits insurer The Hartford as assistant VP, program management and executive communications.
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