RANCHO DOMINGUEZ, CA — American Racing Equipment, Inc. has named Stephen Tooker, 47, as its new chief executive officer.

Tooker replaces Bob Wentworth, a partner at American Racing’s parent company Platinum Equity, who served as CEO on an interim basis while a search for a permanent chief executive was conducted.

“Steve Tooker is the right person to guide American Racing through the next stage of its growth,” Wentworth said. “He is an experienced senior executive and energetic leader who knows how to build and sustain market share in very competitive consumer products markets.”

Prior to joining American Racing, Tooker served as principal and owner of 1 BY 1 Consulting, a Scottsdale, AZ-based consultant group advising clients in industries ranging from consumer packaged goods to telecommunications.

Previously, he was a senior executive with Spectrum Brands (formerly Rayovac Corp.) where he served as president of Spectrum’s U.S. Home and Garden unit. He also held senior executive positions at The Dial Corp. and The Procter & Gamble Co. Tooker earned a Bachelor of Science degree from Miami University of Ohio and an MBA in Finance from Xavier University.

“I am very excited to take on this new challenge and look forward to working with a team that has built an outstanding reputation as one of the industry’s premier brand names for high performance, custom automotive wheels,” Tooker said. “My goal is to position the company to continue its growth and continue to develop and deliver the innovative products that our customer’s demand.”

For more information about American Racing Equipment, go to: http://www.americanracing.com.