Mark Baker Had Been President And COO Of The Company

There seems to be something of a theme here. A second name associated with the Scotts Miracle-Gro company is being circulated by a very reliable source as being on the short list for the position of president and CEO of AOPA.

The person said to be under consideration is Mark Baker, who had been president and COO of Scotts from September 2008 to October 2010 before moving over to Orchard Supply Hardware LLC as president and CEO. An executive profile posted by Bloomberg Businessweek indicates that prior to Scotts, Baker had been CEO of Gander Mountain Company, Home Depot, and Scotty's Inc.

Baker holds a bachelor's degree in geography from the University of Minnesota, according to the profile.

Baker's connection to aviation is not particularly evident. He was mentioned in a 2010 EAA news release when Scotts entered into a partnership with EAA to maintain the grass runway in the warbirds area at Wittman Regional Airport. The article quotes Jim Hagedorn, whom we wrote about previously, extensively. But of Baker, it says simply "Scotts Miracle-Gro President and COO Mark Baker, who is also a pilot ..."

AOPA said previously that it would not comment on rumors, and that no offer or contract has been extended to any candidate to replace Craig Fuller as president and CEO of AOPA.

FMI: www.aopa.org