Home Economy Economic Activity AstroNova names new CEO, ends proxy fight with activist investor

AstroNova names new CEO, ends proxy fight with activist investor

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PBN Staff

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08/22/2025

Jorik — ASTRONOVA HAS a named Jorik E. Ittmann as CEO and president and entered an agreement with Askeladden Capital Management LLC to end a proxy fight. /COURTESY ASTRONOVA INC.

WEST WARWICK – AstroNova Inc. has a new CEO and president and entered into an agreement with an activist investor to end a proxy fight. Jorik E. Ittmann, who joined AstroNova in 2024 as vice president of commercial operations for the product identification segment, took over as CEO and president of the company on Aug.

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WEST WARWICK – AstroNova Inc. has a new CEO and president and entered into an agreement with an activist investor to end a proxy fight. Jorik E. Ittmann, who joined AstroNova in 2024 as vice president of commercial operations for the product identification segment, took over as CEO and president of the company on Aug. 15. He succeeds Darius G. Nevin, who had been serving as interim CEO and president since Gregory A. Woods resigned on June 30. With a permanent CEO now in place, Nevin was named executive chairman and Padraig Finn, who also joined AstroNova in 2024, was promoted to senior vice president. “I am honored to have been selected to lead the excellent team of people at AstroNova,” Ittmann said. “I was brought into the organization to propel change and am excited to be taking on the challenge to unleash the potential of AstroNova and improve organic growth, profitability and cash generation.” Ittmann has more than 20 years of global sales and business development experience across the health care and printing technology industries. Before joining AstroNova, he held senior roles at Zebra Technologies of Lincolnshire, Ill., and Health Link Solutions LLC of Clearwater, Fla. He was promoted to senior vice president of product ID for AstroNova in June 2025. Ittmann majored in economics and International Business at Interven College in the Netherlands and speaks English, Dutch and German. On Thursday, AstroNova entered a cooperation agreement with Texas-based activist investor Askeladden Capital Management LLC, appointing Shawn Kravetz to the board of directors. Kravetz will serve as an independent director and will be a member of the nominating and governance committee, AstroNova said in its press release. He had been previously nominated by Askeladden to stand for election as an AstroNova director. Kravetz is the founder, president and chief investment officer of New York-based Esplanade Capital LLC. He also serves on the board of Spruce Power Holding Corp. “I am excited to join the board at this time in the company’s evolution,” Kravetz said. “I believe that under new leadership, AstroNova is in a solid position to reset and redirect its product identification segment while continuing to leverage the strong market position of its aerospace segment.” Askeladden Capital, owned by Samir Patel, who has a 9.1% stake in AstroNova, was seeking to replace the company's interdependent board members at the annual meeting, which was originally slated for July 9 in Boston but was canceled and yet to be rescheduled. In a proxy statement on April 29, Patel claimed AstroNova had made several strategic and operational missteps since fiscal year 2022, which include an ink-quality issue that persisted for four years and the company spending $18.76 million in cash and assuming $3.4 million in debt to acquire Portugal-based printing firm MTEX in May 2024. Patel also said AstroNova missed profitability targets. “I would like to thank the board for its collaborative engagement in reaching this outcome, which I believe is in the best interests of all AstroNova shareholders,” Patel said Thursday. Askeladden Capital has agreed to abide by certain customary standstill and voting commitments in connection with the cooperation agreement and will support the board’s full slate of directors when the 2025 annual meeting is rescheduled.