Long Beach, Calif. – Longtime Kenwood executive Dan Petersen has retired from the consumer electronics industry, Kenwood USA announced.
Petersen (left) was in the industry 34 years, 20 of them with Kenwood. He started his CE career in 1974 as a principal with Denver-based HP Marketing. In 1980, he joined Kenwood USA and was a key player in creating the company’s mobile electronics business unit, which was the first in the U.S. to offer pull-out radios, two-way speakers, 24-station radio presets, and three-beam in-car CD laser mechanisms, the company said.
After an initial 15-year stint at Kenwood, Petersen moved to Edge Distribution and eventually to Phoenix Gold International, where he served as senior VP. Petersen rejoined Kenwood in 2003 as executive VP of the consumer electronics business and held that title until his retirement.
Said Kenwood USA president Shoichiro Eguchi, “We are grateful to Dan for his vital contributions to Kenwood and to the consumer electronics industry. Through his strong leadership and promotion of Kenwood, our company gained a valuable brand position, and we continue to benefit from his efforts to this day.”
Said Petersen, “We accomplished many things, but the most important was the elevation of Kenwood to a premium mobile electronics brand in the United States.”
He and wife Carol live in Camus Wash.
