Top execs leave buy.com

Buy.com announced the resignation of Gregory Hawkins, chairman and CEO, and Mitch Hill, CFO. James B. Roszak, who has served as a member of the Board of Directors since August 1998 and is the retired president of the Life Insurance Division of Transamerica, will step in as the interim CEO. In addition, Donald Kendall, a long term member of the Board of Directors and the emeritus chairman and retired CEO of PepsiCo Inc., was appointed as the new chairman of the board. The Board of Directors will immediately engage in the search for a new chief executive officer who will permanently fill that role. The company also announced the hiring of Robert Price as chief financial officer. Price joins the company after serving five years with PairGain Technologies Inc. Price has more than 25 years of corporate accounting and finance experience. "While Greg and Mitch played an integral role in the development of the company over the past couple of years and we are grateful to them for their contribution, I believe we will significantly benefit from Robert's extensive expertise and enthusiastic commitment to buy.com's success,” Roszak said.