SEATTLE, July 12, 2011 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blue Nile, Inc. (Nasdaq:NILE), the leading online retailer of diamonds and fine jewelry, today announced the addition of Chris Bruzzo to its Board of Directors. Mr. Bruzzo is the Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for Seattle's Best Coffee ("SBC"), a subsidiary of Starbucks Corporation. In his current role he oversees all global brand strategy, product innovation and category management, communications, advertising, and digital strategy across all channels for the SBC brand. Prior to his current role, Mr. Bruzzo was the Vice President of Global Advertising & Digital Marketing at Starbucks Corporation. He was instrumental in building Starbucks' online presence, which currently includes more than 30 million fans on Facebook, more than 1.5 million Twitter followers and over 110,000 ideas submitted to MyStarbucksIdea.com, an innovative online idea community that Mr. Bruzzo designed and implemented.
"We are thrilled Chris is joining our Board of Directors," said Diane Irvine, Blue Nile Chief Executive Officer. "Starbucks is one of the world's most iconic brands, and Chris has played a key role in the successful expansion of the Starbucks brand online. His perspective and experience will be invaluable to us as we continue to build our global brand," continued Ms. Irvine.
Mr. Bruzzo has served as Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer for SBC since July 2011 and from January 2008 to July 2011 served as the Vice President of Global Advertising & Digital Marketing at Starbucks Corporation. From November 2006 to December 2007, Mr. Bruzzo served as the Vice President of Digital Strategy at Starbucks, and from January 2008 to May 2008, he was the Chief Technology Officer and interim Chief Information Officer at Starbucks.
Prior to his tenure at Starbucks, Mr. Bruzzo served as the Vice President of Marketing and Public Relations at Amazon.com, Inc., and served as the Vice President of Strategic Communications, Content and Initiatives at Amazon. Prior to Amazon, Mr. Bruzzo was an Assistant Vice President at Regence Blue Shield. Mr. Bruzzo holds a B.A. in Political Science from Whitworth College.
Blue Nile also today announced that Ned Mansour resigned from its Board of Directors. "We have greatly appreciated Ned's leadership and unwavering dedication to our business. On behalf of the entire Board, I would like to express our gratitude to Ned for his service to Blue Nile," said Ms. Irvine.
With the resignation of Mr. Mansour and the addition of Mr. Bruzzo, there remain eight members on Blue Nile's Board of Directors.
About Blue Nile, Inc.
Blue Nile, Inc. is the leading online retailer of diamonds and fine jewelry. The Company delivers the ultimate customer experience, providing consumers with a superior way to buy engagement rings, wedding rings and fine jewelry. Blue Nile offers in-depth educational materials and unique online tools that place consumers in control of the jewelry shopping process. The Company has some of the highest quality standards in the industry and offers thousands of independently certified diamonds and fine jewelry at prices significantly below traditional retail. Blue Nile can be found online at www.bluenile.com, www.bluenile.ca and www.bluenile.co.uk. Blue Nile's shares are traded on the Nasdaq Stock Market LLC under the symbol NILE.
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