Fashion Talent on the Move
2020-09-04
Notable companies in this week’s edition: Abercrombie & Fitch, Adidas, Aritzia, Ascena Retail Group, Burberry, Calida Group, Cotopaxi, Deckers, Escada SE, Farfetch, Gap Inc., Greats (Steven Madden), Gucci (Kering), Hudson’s Bay Company, Jimmy Choo (Capri), LVMH, Macy’s, Maison Margiela, Printemps, The RealReal, Saks, Shopify, Ted Baker, Under Armour, Versace, Victoria’s Secret (L Brands), Walmart, Williams-Sonoma.
BOARD
Former Hudson’s Bay Company Chief Marketing Officer Bari Harlam has joined the Board of drugstore pharmacy chain Rite Aid Corporation.
Gap Inc stated in an SEC filing last night that Director Amy Bohutinsky would be resigning from the Board this month after almost two years there. Bohutinsky, who currently sits on the Boards of Duolingo and Zillow, is the former COO of Zillow. No word on if she will be replaced.
Ted Baker added Colin La Fontaine Jackson to its Board. Jackson was a director nominee tapped by Ray Kelvin (the company’s Founder who was ousted last year over inappropriate activities with staff). Kelvin is apparently entitled to one Directorship as long as he maintains more than 10% ownership of the company. Jackson is a financial services guy who, before you get your hopes up, is a middle-aged white guy. #DontRockTheBoat #OustedButNotOutsted
Wendy Yang, President Performance Lifestyle Group at Deckers, has joined the Board of outdoor gear and apparel company Cotopaxi.
Under Armour named local non-profit CEO Wes Moore to its Board of Directors. Moore, who is black, is currently head of the Robin Hood Foundation, a poverty-fighting organization based in Under Armour’s home town of Baltimore.
EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP
Capri Holdings-owned Jimmy Choo has named Hannah Colman as its new CEO. Colman, who has been Interim CEO since earlier this year, joined as a Store Manager at the company’s first boutique in London about 24 years ago. Colman will report to Capri CEO John Idol.
Also in the footwear world, Ryan Babenzien has stepped down as CEO of Greats (which was acquired late last year by Steven Madden). True to my theory — start-up founders never stick around once their companies are acquired. No word on who or if he’ll be replaced at Greats.
Printemps announced that Jean-Marc Bellaiche has joined as its new CEO, replacing Paolo de Cesara, who left early this year (or, as my Google Translate told me in a French article, “Spring has a New President”…). Bellaiche was most recently Chief Strategy Officer at ContentSquare, having earlier in his career been a Partner at Boston Consulting Group. He also had a stint at Tiffany as SVP of Strategy & Business Development.
Adidas exec Jon Wexler, VP GM of Yeezy, is leaving the company to join Shopify as VP of its Creator and Influencer Program. Except for a brief stint at Nike’s Converse division, Wexler has been at Adidas pretty much his entire career.
Swiss-headquartered $400Mln fashion company Calida Group (with brands including Calida, Aubade, Millet, and Lafuma), announced that CEO Reiner Pichler would be stepping down once his successor is named. Pichler had been at the company for about four years. It’s funny that this article popped up — because I’ve been looking for a $180 set of casual super light pajamas!
VACANT CEO TRACKER
** Calida Group - Sep’2020
** Greats (Steven Madden) - Sep’2020
Aspinal of London - Nov'2018
Bonmarché (Peacocks) - Dec'2019
Coach (Tapestry) - Mar’2020
Debenhams - Mar’2020
Destination Maternity - Jun'2019
Duluth Trading Co. - Sep'2019
Emilio Pucci - Jan'2019
Escada - Jan’2020
Gap brand (Gap Inc.) - Jan’2020
Hunter - Jun’2020
J.Jill - Dec'2019
Jack Wills - Aug'2019
Jigsaw - Jan'2019
Kookaï - Mar'2019
Lanvin (Fosun) - Mar’2020
Laura Ashley - Jun’2020
LXRandCo - Sep'2019
Monsoon Accessorize - Aug'2019
Mothercare - Jan’2020
Outdoor Voices - Feb’2020
Patagonia - Jun’2020
PSEB Group - Jan’2020
RYU Apparel - Mar’2020
Tapestry - Jul’2020
TopShop (Arcadia) - Dec'2019
The Row - Oct'2019
Vince Holding - Aug’2020
Wolford - Oct'2019
Yoox Net-a-Porter Group (Richemont)- Mar’2020
COVID BANKRUPTCIES
This past week:
Escada SE (Germany only)
Possibly in the hopper…
The Children’s Place
Designer Brands
Francesca’s
Harvey Nichols
Iconix Brand Group
J.Jill
Jigsaw
Lands’ End
Nordstrom
River Island
MOVES (IN BULK)
Gap Inc. announced that it will be closing an additional 225 stores within its Gap and Banana Republic divisions, with even more store closures coming in 2021.
MERCH/SALES/P&A/PRODUCTION
Walmart named Jillian Cueff VP of Merchandising, Jewelry & Accessories. She’s been at Walmart since 2019, having worked at Macy’s for several years prior.
Kaitlyn Shadiow is now VP of Merchandising, Outdoor Living at Walmart. She was previously VP Home for Walmart E-Commerce. Prior to joining Walmart in 2019, she was at Google for a couple years, and Target for several years before that. Connecting the dots, I think these “promotions” are part of the streamlining efforts between the company’s online and B&M channels (announced in July).
Former Yelp exec Kayti Sullivan has joined The RealReal as Chief Revenue Officer.
Kate Duty Guenther has joined Aritzia as VP Concierge. She’s held similar, customer care-oriented roles at Tommy Bahama and Nordstrom.
CREATIVE/DESIGN
Adidas Creative Director Paul Gaudio is no longer at the company, just days after he commented on Instagram about the recent shooting in Kenosha, Wisconsin. He had been at the company for more than twenty years.
MARKETING/DIGITAL
Ishan Patel was named COO Digital for L Brands-owned Victoria’s Secret. He has been at L Brands for several years.
Additionally, VS promoted Karla Williams to VP Digital Commerce.
Abercrombie & Fitch named Beau Gray as VP User Experience & Digital Product. He was most recently at Signet Jewelers, having also worked at Kohl’s and American Eagle, among others.
Kering-owned Gucci has recruited Tim Hartman from Hugo Boss to be VP Digital.
John Wilson has joined Burberry as VP Marketing. His background is mostly at creative agencies, including AKQA and R/GA.
Maison Margiela named Tanja Ruhnke as its Chief Marketing Officer, a new role at the company. Ruhnke, who will report to incoming CEO Gianfranco Gianangeli, was most recently VP of Communications at Valentino.
STORES/TECHNOLOGY/OPS/SUPPLY CHAIN
Ascena Retail Group has promoted Derek Durley to EVP Chief Planning & Supply Chain officer. He’s been at the company since 2013, having earlier worked at Lands’ End and Banana Republic.
Matt Pritchard has joined Gap Inc. as VP Product Management. He was most recently at Williams-Sonoma for more than a decade.
Angela Vinci is now VP Consumer Product at Farfetch, based in London. She’s had stints at Walmart, Gap, Apple, and Sephora.
Stacy Salvaggio, who had been at McDonald’s for nearly 20 years, has joined Vancouver-based Aritzia as VP Retail Operations.
Versace named Lorenzo Dovesi as its SVP Industrial Operations. He’s been in a variety of ops roles at brands including Benetton and Armani.
Peter Chachura has rejoined Saks as VP of Store Planning Design & Construction (are they actually building new stores?). He was most recently at Holt Renfrew for the last few years.
FINANCE
Macy’s announced the appointment of Paul Griscom as its SVP Controller. He had been VP & Interim Principal Accounting Officer since June, having previously held a variety of roles at the retailer since 2016. I don’t track finance departments as deeply as I could, but is theirs being held together by duct tape right now (at least at the top)? Connecting the dots, I’m assuming Griscom is replacing Felicia Williams, the prior Controller who is now Interim CFO, who herself replaced Paula Price (who left this year after only two years). If you followed all that…
HR/LEGAL
Walmart has named Deborah Vaughn as SVP & General Counsel, International. Previously based in Singapore in a similar role at Kimberly-Clark, Vaughn will be based in Bentonville. #CultureShock. She’ll be replacing Samuel Reeves, who has retired after 18 years with the retailer. If you’re interested in the significant hiring Walmart has done in its legal department (arguably as it becomes more acquisitive abroad — i.e., Flipkart, Bonobos, possibly TikTok…), BloombergLaw has an in-depth article.
LVMH named Corey Smith to the newly-created role of VP Diversity & Inclusion for North America, reporting to Gena Smith. Smith, who is black, was most recently at Major League Baseball, having earlier worked at NBC Universal and Altria.
FINAL THOUGHTS
After five months of only doing “take out” food at our local restaurants, my better half Rob and I decided to take the plunge and eat out recently. This restaurant, Liz’s Cafe, did a great job of converting their parking lot to outdoor dining, very widely spaced among tables, etc. If you’re ever in Provincetown, give them a try!
ABOUT: I have 20 years of wide-ranging executive recruiting experience. As a consultant, my services include name generation, sourcing, industry talent mapping, crafting position descriptions, and developing thorough target lists. Connect with me on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/in/tjasonbrown.