Sherwin-Williams Names Sue Wadden Director of Color Marketing

Sherwin-Williams has appointed Sue Wadden to the position of director of color marketing for its Paint Stores Group. Wadden succeeds Jackie Jordan, who is retiring from the company in February after more than 30 years.

“We thank Jackie for her wonderful legacy of creative contributions to Sherwin-Williams,” said Karl Schmitt, senior vice president of marketing, Sherwin-Williams. “With a strong background in design and color leadership, Sue brings a depth of experience and accomplishments related to color on a global scale. We look forward to great success with Sue in this important role.”

As the face and voice of color for Sherwin-Williams, Wadden will be responsible for the overall vision and philosophy for color leadership. She will play a key role in leading major world color trend forecasting for both professionals and homeowners and will oversee the recently launched ColorSnap® color selection system, as well as the research and development of all palettes, the annual colormix color Forecast and development of the Color of the Year. Wadden will also serve as an editorial advisor to Sherwin-Williams STIR® magazine for design professionals and take an active role in interfacing with consumer and trade media on topics surrounding color.


Wadden began her career as a color expert at Sherwin-Williams in 1998, as a color services marketing consultant and then became a senior color marketing designer for the company. In 2013, Wadden moved to her most recent position as marketing manager of color design for Sherwin-Williams Diversified Brands Group, which includes Krylon and Pratt & Lambert. Of her many accomplishments with Sherwin-Williams Diversified Brands Group, Wadden was responsible for the development of five color systems and merchandising programs including Sherwin-Williams Australia and Dutch Boy.