Padres hire Chris Connolly as senior vice president of marketing
SAN DIEGO – The San Diego Padres today announced the hiring of Chris Connolly as Senior Vice President of Marketing. In his new role with the organization, Connolly will oversee all aspects of the Padres marketing, content, broadcast, entertainment and fan engagement.
“We are extremely excited that Chris is joining our senior leadership team at a key point in the history of our franchise. Chris has experience leading and growing some of the most recognizable brands in the world and more than that is a highly collaborative and team-first leader who will help steward the Padres brand into a very bright future,” said Padres CEO Erik Greupner. “For several decades he has successfully led high-level projects and consumer marketing campaigns for both Disney and Hasbro, as well as his own consultancy group. We’re confident that his tremendous skills and experience will help take our fan engagement to the next level.”
Prior to joining the Padres, Connolly spent 12 years working for Disney in a variety of roles throughout his tenure. Most recently, he led Consumer Marketing for the Disneyland Resort where he was instrumental in leading the successful launches of Star Wars Galaxy’s Edge in 2019 and the Pixar Fest celebration in 2018. Other notable accomplishments include driving merchandise and food revenue to record levels through dedicated social media campaigns, developing marketing strategies for the previous Annual Passholder program, and cultivating mutually beneficial partnerships with local hotels, organizations, and corporate partners. Connolly also held the title of Sr. Vice President of Consumer Marketing for Disney Consumer Products from 2012-16 where he spearheaded the retail, product development and marketing initiatives behind the highly successful Frozen franchise and the popular Disney Princess brand. Upon first joining Disney in 2009, Connolly served as the Sr. Vice President of Marketing Worldwide for Walt Disney Studios, which saw him lead the Home Entertainment consumer marketing and creative services team responsible for Disney, Pixar, ABC, and Disney Channel DVD/Blu-Ray assets.
A native of Southern California, Connolly has also held the titles of President of the Big Idea Marketing Group, LLC. and Vice President of Worldwide Marketing for Hasbro during his career. The University of California, Los Angeles alum also serves as a guest lecturer at both UCLA and USC for their MBA programs on Leadership, Marketing and Innovation, and is a Member of the Board of Directors for Hands Together, a Haitian relief organization. Connolly and his wife Denise, a San Diego native, have two daughters: Olivia and Caroline.