C-Suite Moves: May update
Here are the major leadership changes that occurred during April, starting with the most recent. (All changes have already taken effect unless otherwise noted.)
•VF Corp. appointed a new leader of its struggling Vans brand. The footwear and outdoor apparel giant, whose brands also include Timberland, The North Face and Dickies, named Michelle (“Sun”) Choe as global brand president of Vans beginning in late July. She joins Vans from Lululemon, where she spent seven years as chief product officer.
•Citi Trends, the value retailer of apparel, accessories and home trends primarily for African American and multicultural families, appointed Ken Seipel as interim CEO, effective June 2, 2024. In connection with the appointment, David Makuen stepped down as chief executive after serving in the role since March 2020.
•Petco Health and Wellness Company made changes to its executive leadership team, including naming Abercrombie & Fitch veteran James Roth as chief stores officer. The retailer also said chief merchandising and supply chain officer Amy College will leave the company on August 17. Shari White was appointed interim chief merchant. Additionally, COO Justin Tichy is leaving Petco, and the role of chief operating officer has been eliminated.
•Ralph Lauren Corp. veteran Justin Picicci was named CFO of the brand.
•VF Corp, the parent company of Vans, The North Face, Timberland and Dickies appointed Spotify executive Paul Vogel as CFO, effective July 8. He will succeed Matt Puckett who will be stepping down.
•The children’s apparel retailer said that president, board member and Jane Elfers, president, CEO and board member of the Children’s Place exited the company under "mutual agreement.” She had led the company, since 2010. Board member Muhammad Umair was tapped as president and interim CEO, effective May 20.
•Mike Frazzini, who previously served as technology chief of staff for floral and gift marketplace FTD, joined children’s apparel brand Hanna Andersson as chief technology officer.
•At Home Group Inc. ended its search for a new leader with the hiring of retail veteran Brad Weston as CEO. He succeeds longtime At Home chairman and chief executive Lewis L. (Lee) Bird III, who retired at the end of last year. Most recently, Weston served as CEO of Party City Holdings Inc., which he left in November after the company emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
•Online grocer Thrive Market named April Lane as chief merchandising officer. From 2022 until May, Lane served as chief e-commerce officer at Hearst Corporation. Previously, she spent more than a decade in merchandising and general management roles at Amazon.
•Retail marketing veteran Fabiola Torres was appointed global chief marketing officer for Gap Inc.’s namesake brand. Torres joined the apparel retailer after four years at PepsiCo, most recently as senior VP and CMO of energy drinks and the company’s Hispanic business unit. Prior to that, she was at Apple’s Beats by Dre brand for almost three years,
•Footwear and apparel company Wolverine World Wide named Taryn Miller as CFO, succeeding Michael D. Stornant, who retired after nearly 30 years with the company.
•Batteries Plus promoted chief strategy officer Jon Sica to the role of COO. Sica joined Batteries Plus in 2019 as chief strategy officer.
•Susan Healy joined casual footwear brand Crocs, Inc. as executive VP and chief financial officer. Most recently, she was CFO of IAA, Inc., a global marketplace for automotive buyers and sellers. Prior to 2021, Healy served as senior VP of finance for Ulta Beauty.
•Beyond, Inc., parent company of Bed, Bath & Beyond, Overstock and Zulily, expanded its senior leadership team with the appointment of Guncha Mehta as chief digital and information officer, Stacey Shivel as chief merchandising officer and Angela Minor as chief marketing officer. In addition, Deb Bollom was promoted to chief merchandising officer.
•Sandra Stangl, president and CEO of Banana Republic, a division of Gap Inc., departed the company after serving in the role since late 2020. A search for a new leader has started.