David W. Johnson, 83, former Campbell Soup CEO

David Willis Johnson, 83, of Solebury, who led the Campbell Soup Co. with infectious optimism in the 1990s, died of heart failure in Doylestown on Sunday, June 19.

Mr. Johnson, a native of Australia, served as president and chief executive officer of Campbell from 1990 to 1997, and again from March 2000 to January 2001 after coming out of retirement as the company sought a new leader.

He was brought in by Campbell's at a time when the Dorrance family, which had dominated the company for decades, had considered selling its shares. His tenure was characterized by higher stock prices and increased acquisitions, like those of Pace Foods Ltd. and the Australian cookie company Arnotts Ltd.

In the quarter before Mr. Johnson joined Campbell as CEO, the average stock price was $11.65 a share, according to Bloomberg News. In his last quarter as CEO in the 1990s, it was $45.93. That is a 294 percent increase compared with a 138 percent increase in the Standard & Poor's 500 Index over the same period.

Previously, Mr. Johnson was chairman and CEO of Gerber Products Inc. and Entenmann's Bakery. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of Sydney and an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago.

He started with Colgate-Palmolive Co. as a management trainee in 1959 and eventually became chairman and managing director of its South African operations. Mr. Johnson served for many years on that company's board of directors, beginning in 1991.

Carpe futurum was the motto Mr. Johnson lived by, a Latin expression meaning "seize the future."

"Whenever something was going wrong in the short term, he would remind everybody, look to the future, lay out your plan, and think about the long term," his son David said.

Mr. Johnson's optimism was strategic, said family and former colleagues.

"He was terrific at enlisting others in causes he was enthusiastic about," said Colgate-Palmolive president and CEO Ian Cook.

Cook recalled Mr. Johnson's email address: "unstoppableDJ."

"That kind of summed David up," he said. "He was that, but made it fun along the way."

Mr. Johnson was known as an approachable and upbeat leader, colleagues recalled.

"I remember him coming into a sales meeting and wearing a cape and calling himself 'Souperman,' " said John Coleman, who was senior vice president of law and public affairs for Campbell during Mr. Johnson's tenure.

"He was going to do whatever was needed to get people inspired and focused," Coleman said. "To me, he exemplified the perfect mix between humility and self-confidence."

When he first came to Campbell, Coleman said, "David didn't just come in the back door. When he arrived, it was literally, quite literally, trumpets blaring and a new song about how we were going to be M'm M'm good in the 1990s."

Coleman added that Mr. Johnson was known for going into a Campbell factory and hosting a meeting with all of the employees. "There wasn't enough room in the Camden world headquarters" to meet there with all of its employees, "so we'd meet in a baseball stadium," Coleman said.

In addition to his son, Mr. Johnson is survived by his wife, Sylvia Ramonde Johnson; sons Justin and Harley; and five grandchildren.

Burial was Wednesday, July 6, in Coffs Harbour in New South Wales, Australia.

lfeiner@philly.com

215-854-5915 @lauren_feiner