Ex-Mazda Exec Named President of Mark III

Clark J. Vitulli, the former executive vice president of Mazda Motor of America in Irvine, has been selected president and chief executive officer of Mark III Industries Inc. in Ocala, Fla., one of the nation’s leading van conversion companies.

Vitulli, a longtime Chrysler Corp. executive, was hired to head Mazda’s daily operations in 1989 and was laid off in a corporate reorganization that trimmed the entire top tier of the Japanese-owned importer’s management ranks late last month.

At Mark III Industries, he succeeds founder R. Thad Boyd Jr., who died last year. Vitulli, who will be a member of the board of directors, will direct and supervise all company activities, including product development, manufacturing, marketing and sales. He will report to company chairwoman Sally Boyd.

Mark III Industries, founded in 1978, converts and builds multipurpose luxury vans and pickup trucks.