Reggie Fils-Aimé facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Reggie Fils-Aimé
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Fils-Aimé at the 2011 Game Developers Conference
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| 3rd President of Nintendo of America | |
| In office May 25, 2006 – April 15, 2019 |
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| Preceded by | Tatsumi Kimishima |
| Succeeded by | Doug Bowser |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
Reginald Fils-Aimé
March 25, 1961 New York City, U.S. |
| Nationality | American |
| Spouse | Stacey Sanner |
| Children | 3 |
| Alma mater | Cornell University (BS) |
| Signature |  |
Reginald Fils-Aimé (born March 25, 1961) is an American businessman. He is famous for being the president and chief operating officer of Nintendo of America. This is the North American part of the Japanese video game company Nintendo. He held this role from 2006 to 2019. Before that, he was the executive vice president of sales and marketing.
Fils-Aimé became very popular with gamers. This happened after his appearance at Nintendo's E3 2004 press conference. He helped make Nintendo a strong competitor again. Other big video game companies were Sony Interactive Entertainment and Microsoft. Before Nintendo, Fils-Aimé worked in sales and marketing for companies like Procter & Gamble and Pizza Hut.
He retired from Nintendo of America on April 15, 2019. Doug Bowser took over his role. After Nintendo, Fils-Aimé became a leader at Cornell University. He also joined the boards of directors for companies like GameStop.
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Early Life and Education
Reginald Fils-Aimé was born on March 25, 1961. He was born in The Bronx, New York City. His parents moved to the United States from Haiti in the 1950s. They left Haiti because of political problems. His mother worked in a jewelry store. His father was a machinist.
Fils-Aimé grew up on Long Island. He went to Brentwood High School. He said he was one of the few minority students there. In 1979, he was accepted into Cornell University. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in applied economics and management in 1983. He was also the president of his fraternity, Phi Sigma Kappa.
Career Before Nintendo
After college, Fils-Aimé worked at Procter & Gamble. He was part of their brand management program. Later, he became a senior director of national marketing at Pizza Hut. There, he helped launch popular pizzas like the Bigfoot Pizza.
He also worked as the Head of Marketing for Guinness Imports Co. in the U.S. He managed all their brands. Then, he became chief marketing officer at Derby Cycle. He led sales and marketing for eight different brands worldwide. He also managed Derby's British operations, Raleigh U.K..
Next, Fils-Aimé joined Panda Management Co.. He was a senior vice-president there. In 2001, he joined MTV's VH1 network as a senior vice-president. He left in 2003. While at VH1, he helped increase the channel's ratings by 30%. He did this by focusing on younger viewers. He also created a marketing plan for The Concert for New York City. This concert raised over $35 million for disaster relief after the September 11 attacks.
Joining Nintendo
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Fils-Aimé started at Nintendo in December 2003. He became the executive vice president of sales and marketing. He was recruited for the job. During his interviews, he asked to meet Satoru Iwata, Nintendo's president. This was unusual, but his request was granted. Their conversation lasted much longer than planned. This meeting helped build a strong friendship between them. Fils-Aimé said this friendship helped Nintendo improve as a business. He called Iwata his mentor and a "dear friend."
Fils-Aimé was in charge of all sales and marketing for Nintendo. This included the United States, Canada, and Latin America. On May 25, 2006, he became the president and chief operating officer of Nintendo of America. He was the first American to hold this important position.
When Fils-Aimé joined Nintendo in 2003, the video game industry was not growing much. Competitors like Microsoft and Sony Computer Entertainment were making more powerful consoles. Nintendo was selling the GameCube. But Iwata and other leaders saw that most games were sequels. There were not many new ideas. Fils-Aimé said Nintendo decided to focus on fun games before he joined. His marketing skills helped them achieve this goal.
Becoming a Public Face
Fils-Aimé became well-known at the 2004 E3 event. The year before, Nintendo's press conference was quiet. It was not as exciting as Microsoft's or Sony's. Nintendo was also struggling in the sixth console generation. The GameCube was not selling as well as the PlayStation 2 or original Xbox. Many long-time Nintendo fans were disappointed.
Fils-Aimé led the 2004 conference. This was his first public introduction. His presentation was bold. He even spoke directly about how Microsoft and Sony handled game content. This message was planned by Nintendo's leaders. Fils-Aimé was careful about the tone, but they wanted him to deliver it. His energetic style was new for Nintendo. It quickly gained many fans. Gamers started calling him the "Regginator." This was a play on the Terminator character.
After the conference, many pictures of him spread online. Years later, Fils-Aimé said the presentation was not his idea. It came from the public relations team. He had to be convinced to use such a bold approach. Many people thought his presentation was exactly what Nintendo needed. It showed they were still important and not taking a quiet approach to gaming anymore.
Fils-Aimé is credited with improving Nintendo's public image in North America. Many fans called his arrival the "Reggielution." This name came from "Revolution," the code name for the Wii. He focused on marketing to young people. But he also continued to reach older gamers. He believed that reaching all types of players would help the whole industry. He thought Nintendo was best positioned to do this.
While in sales, Fils-Aimé changed how Nintendo worked with stores. He made agreements that stores would only get Nintendo products if they ordered large amounts. This helped the Nintendo DS become very successful.
On July 11, 2007, Fils-Aimé introduced the Wii Balance Board. He walked on stage and said, “My body is ready.” This quote became a famous Internet meme. Fils-Aimé later recognized the phrase many times. He used it at E3 2012 and on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. He even used it in his retirement announcement video.
When Iwata started Nintendo Direct online press conferences, Fils-Aimé often joined them. They even had a fake Mii-avatar battle. This also became popular online. Fils-Aimé also appeared in funny skits for Nintendo's public presentations. These skits were made with help from companies like Stoopid Buddy Stoodios.
In 2016 and 2017, Fils-Aimé appeared on the Game Theorists web show. He debated different Nintendo topics.
Retirement from Nintendo
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Fils-Aimé announced his retirement on February 21, 2019. His last day was April 15, 2019. Doug Bowser, Nintendo's head of sales, took his place. Fils-Aimé said he started thinking about retiring after Iwata passed away in 2015. He wanted to leave his own legacy.
He waited until Nintendo of America was doing very well. This happened by early 2019. The Nintendo Switch console was a huge success. It sold over 32 million units by the end of 2018. He felt the company would be strong for many years.
After Nintendo
After leaving Nintendo, Fils-Aimé started a Twitter account. His first tweet was, "Hi Twitter community."
In October 2019, Fils-Aimé became the first Leader in Residence at Cornell University. He was already on advisory boards for Cornell. He also joined the board of directors for the New York Videogame Critics Circle. He became a managing partner at Brentwood Growth Partners.
He wants to help young people grow into leaders. He plans to share his "Seven Principles for Next Generation Leaders" at Cornell. He will also work with the New York Videogame Critics Circle. They help students learn critical thinking through video games. This allows him to give back to his community and his old university.
Fils-Aimé has presented at The Game Awards since 2015. In March 2020, GameStop added Fils-Aimé to its board of directors. This was part of GameStop's plan to improve its business. He also joined Spin Master's board of directors in May 2020.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Fils-Aimé started a podcast. It's called Talking Games with Reggie and Harold. He hosts it with journalist Harold Goldberg. The podcast raises money for charity. It helps students in New York City affected by the pandemic. In October 2020, Fils-Aimé joined the board of directors at Brunswick Corporation. He also wrote a book called Disrupting the Game. It was released in April 2022.
Awards and Recognition
Fils-Aimé has received many awards for his marketing skills. These include a Clio Award and two Gold Effie Awards. He was named one of the "Marketing 100" in 1998 by Advertising Age.
From the video game industry, he received a Lifetime Achievement Award. This was from the International Video Game Hall of Fame. He also got the Legend Award from the New York Videogame Critics Circle.
Personal Life
Fils-Aimé is married to Stacey Sanner. He met her when he worked at VH1. He has three children from a previous marriage. He started playing video games with his children when they were very young. In 2006, he lived near Seattle.
See also
In Spanish: Reggie Fils-Aim%C3%A9 para ni%C3%B1os
