John brings more than 20 years of experience to the role, having most recently worked at Mattel and The Walt Disney Company. 

Jakks Pacific has announced the appointment of John Kimble as executive vice president and chief financial officer. John will be responsible for overseeing all financial aspects of the company, including financial planning and analysis, accounting and financial reporting, as well as managing the tax, internal audit, treasury and investor relations functions. He will report directly to Jakks’ chairman and CEO, Stephen Berman.

John brings more than 20 years of experience in finance, strategy and corporate development, with expertise in operations, financial planning and strategy, cross-border international business activities, licensing and mergers and acquisitions, in addition to financial reporting and accounting.

He worked for over 12 years in various VP/leadership positions at The Walt Disney Company, covering finance, strategy, operations, and business development. More recently, John spent six years at Mattel where he held several positions, including vice president and head of corporate development, licensing acquisitions, M&A. In between his service at Disney and Mattel, John spent a two years as an entrepreneur at a start-up gaming company. He began his career as a consultant for Mars & Co., a global strategy consulting firm.

Stephen Berman said: “We are very excited to welcome John to the team and add his broad experience in finance and licensing to our management team. We believe his financial management skills coupled with his entrepreneurial experience will serve us well as we continue to implement our strategy of growth both domestically and internationally. Moreover, John’s decades of experience working within the toy industry, together with his extensive background with licensing, is a perfect fit as we look to increase our IP portfolio with new and exciting products.”

John added: “I look forward to joining Jakks and working with Stephen Berman and the management team. I see this as a natural evolution of my professional career as I can bring my experiences at Disney and Mattel to this position. With Jakks’ recent recapitalisation in the rear window, I believe that my skill sets will allow me to assist Jakks in the development and implementation of its business strategies aimed at increasing shareholder value.”

Jakks has also announced that the term of Stephen Berman’s employment has been extended for one year until December 31st, 2021.