• September 30, 2008

Bruce Carbonari, currently president and chief executive officer, has been elected chairman, effective today, and will remain chief executive officer.

Norm Wesley, chairman of the board, will retire after more than two decades with the company and nearly nine years as chairman. Wesley, who also served as chief executive officer from December 1999 through December 2007, will remain a member of the Fortune Brands board.

Carbonari has been a member of the board since August 2007, and has been president and CEO since January 2008, when he succeeded Wesley as chief executive. An 18-year veteran of the Fortune Brands leadership team, Carbonari previously served as president and chief operating officer of Fortune Brands, led the company's Home & Hardware subsidiary, and also led Moen, the company's largest single brand.--Nina M. Lentini