Aristocrat Leisure has embarked on a notable phase of executive transition, entrusting Matt Primmer with the prestigious role of Chief Product Officer. Embracing his new responsibilities with immediate effect, Primmer will report directly to Trevor Croker, the CEO and Managing Director, marking a significant step upward in his professional trajectory since joining the company in August 2014.
Primmer, whose tenure at Aristocrat has been characterized by a series of progressively influential positions, assumes the mantle of CPO following four fruitful years steering the land-based business division in the same capacity. Prior to this, his extensive experience within the company encompassed tenures as Executive Vice President and Senior Vice President of Global Products and Insights, paralleled by his strategic inputs as Senior Director of Portfolio Planning and Strategy across the Americas.
The appointment stands on the bedrock of Aristocrat’s confidence in Primmer’s diverse background, including a stint as Domestic Product Marketing Manager at Ainsworth Game Technology, his tenure as CEO of United Technology Services, and valuable experience gained as a Sales Executive for Shuffle Master.
In an enthusiastic announcement, CEO Croker expressed his profound satisfaction in welcoming Primmer to Aristocrat’s executive team. He commended Primmer’s decisive contributions to Aristocrat’s global product dominance, nurturing the company’s creative and technical talents and championing design and development initiatives squarely aimed at addressing customer-centric product strategies.
Croker articulated the importance of Primmer’s role in consolidating an enterprise-wide view of product strategy as Aristocrat ventures into an expanding array of product verticals. Moreover, he underscored Primmer’s integral role in ensuring judicious allocation of design and development investments.
Primmer’s elevation coincides with Aristocrat’s celebration of a robust financial report, showcasing a 13.0% increase in revenue for the fiscal year of 2023. Published in November, the impressive figures encapsulated a total revenue of AU$6.30 billion, with EBITDA and several profitability metrics experiencing substantial climbs. Net profit after tax, before the amortization of acquired intangibles, surged by 46.7% to $1.54 billion, while normalized EBITDA leaped by 33.2% to $2.11 billion, painting a picture of a thriving gaming and technology enterprise.
Croker, in a reflection of the past year’s success, pointed to pivotal acquisitions such as Roxor Gaming in January 2023, which subsequently catalyzed the growth of Aristocrat’s innovative Anaxi online arm.
Moreover, Aristocrat is on the brink of finalizing the acquisition of NeoGames, a strategic move valued at $1.20 billion that is anticipated to consummate before the second half’s end of the 2024 calendar year. As Aristocrat hones in on this acquisition, Croker teased the prospect of further takeovers as 2024 approaches, signaling a clear intent to marshal new opportunities for expansion.
Primmer’s role as Chief Product Officer is cast as pivotal in navigating the organization through a landscape of acquisitions and market expansions. Upholding the legacy of product innovation and customer-first strategies, his leadership is expected to shepherd Aristocrat through an exciting era of growth and diversification, further cementing its status as a leading entity in the global gaming industry.
