Finance & Capital Management

Milan, Italy -– Enrico Cavatorta, who accepted the role of CEO at global eyewear manufacturer/retailer Luxottica Group in September 2014, has resigned due to what the company termed disagreements with corporate governance structure. Board member Roger Abravanel also resigned for the same reason.  

Miami -- A visionary downtown Miami project has launched construction, promising to deliver a mix of uses and a true urban community.  

Foothill Ranch, Calif. -- The Wet Seal announced a workforce reduction resulting in the elimination of a combination of 78 filled and open positions, including  66 positions at the company’s corporate office, or a 24% reduction in headcount, and 12 positions at the field management level, representing a 20% decrease. The cuts are the first steps in the retailer’s initiative to reduce its overall cost structure.   

Kroger’s existing businesses are performing quite well so what better time to create a new senior executive role focused on new business development.

The nation’s largest supermarket operator said it named Procter & Gamble veteran Alex Tosolini to the newly created role of SVP of new business development reporting directly to CEO Rodney McMullen. Tosolini spent the past 24 years at P&G, most recently as SVP of global e-business and vp of global e-commerce.

Online referral service provider Angie’s List plans to increase the size of its headquarters in Indianapolis and increase the workforce to 2,800 people within five years.

Angie’s List, a review drive enterprise that helps facilitate transactions between more than 2.8 million consumers and service providers in 720 categories, said it plans to grow its base of employees from 500 in 2011 to roughly 2,800 by 2019. The company said the expansion was enabled in part by an attractive incentive plan from the City of Indianapolis and State of Indiana.

Merrillville, Ind. -- DirectBuy, the membership-based buying organization that enables consumers to purchase from manufacturers and suppliers without retail markup, has named a new executive leadership team. This new team is led by new CEO Mike Bornhorst, who comes to DirectBuy after spending time in leadership positions with companies such as ADT and Culligan Water.   

Duluth, Minn. –- Maurices is ramping up its store openings in time for the holiday season with plans to open 16 new stores. These expansions will give the girls’ apparel retailer a total of 938 locations, advancing it toward its goal of having more than 1,300 stores in the United States and Canada.   

Huntington Beach, Calif. -- Quiksilver announced that Bob McKnight will retire as a senior executive of the company on Oct. 31, 2014. He will remain a director. The teen retailer also said CEO Andy Mooney has been elected chairman and Pierre Agnes has been promoted to president of Quiksilver, effective Nov. 1, 2014.