Avery President to Become CEO

Label-making giant Avery Dennison Corp. said Friday that Dean A. Scarborough would become chief executive May 1, replacing 64-year-old Philip M. Neal, who will continue as company chairman until 2006.

Scarborough, 49, has been with Pasadena-based Avery for 21 years, and president and chief operating officer since 2000.

Scarborough will “provide the leadership that is vital to achieving our aggressive growth goals for the future,” said Neal, Avery’s CEO since May 1998.

The leadership change, which was expected, comes at a sensitive time for Avery, which is under investigation in the United States for anti-competitive practices.

In addition, the company disclosed in November that it had found “instances of improper conduct” by employees in its European operations and that it expected the infractions to result in fines.

Avery launched an internal inquiry in 2004 after European regulators began to investigate Avery as part of a broader antitrust probe of possible price-fixing and manipulation of the European paper market.

Avery’s stock fell 4 cents to $60.49 on the New York Stock Exchange on Friday.

In 2004, Avery had about 21,400 employees and sales of $5.3 billion.