Cott Corporation announced the appointment of Clyde Preslar as its new executive vice president and chief financial officer. He will join the company on August 29, 2005.

For the past nine years, Preslar has been chief financial officer of Lance Inc. In this role, he was responsible for all financial and corporate planning and development activities of Lance. He developed a strong finance team which upgraded Lance's planning and analysis capabilities, business controls and investor communications. He also led the evaluation, due diligence and negotiation of several acquisitions, including Cape Cod Potato Chips.

"We're extremely pleased to announce that someone with Clyde's breadth and depth of financial experience is joining our team," commented John Sheppard, Cott's president and chief executive officer. "His financial leadership of both retailer brand and brand name manufacturing businesses will allow him to hit the ground running and bring a fresh perspective to Cott's business."

Prior to joining Lance, Preslar held progressively senior finance positions with Black & Decker from 1989 to 1996, including director of Finance and director of Investor Relations. From 1978 to 1989, he was with RJR Nabisco, where his last position was director of Investor Relations.

"Cott's strategic position and customer-centric focus are outstanding. These strengths combined with the continued growth of retailer brands offer an exciting business opportunity," added Preslar. "I've been extremely impressed with the team I have met so far and am looking forward to being a part of the continued growth of this dynamic company."

Preslar holds an undergraduate degree from Elon College, an MBA from Wake Forest University and is a CPA and CMA.