Casual

SUFFERN, N.Y. — Ascena Retail Group, a leading specialty retailer offering clothing, shoes, and accessories for missy and plus-size women and tween girls, under the Justice, Lane Bryant, maurices, dressbarn and Catherines brands, has named Ronnie Robinson to the position of president Ascena Global Sourcing (AGS).

New York -- Ralph Lauren Corp. will debut its Denim & Supply retail banner in the United States, opening a store in New York City this spring, according to WWD.com. It will be the first freestanding U.S. location for the brand, which features affordable price points.  

Suffern, N.Y. -- Ascena Retail Group announced it has named Ronnie Robinson to the position of president of Ascena Global Sourcing (AGS).

David Jaffe, president and CEO of the Ascena Retail Group, commented: “Leveraging our sourcing capability across all our brands is an important strategic initiative for Ascena. Ronnie’s experience and accomplishments make him the ideal candidate to lead this effort.”

Suffern, N.Y. -- Ascena Retail Group announced that Linda Heasley has accepted the position of president and CEO of Lane Bryant effective Feb. 18. Heasley joins Lane Bryant division after six years as president and CEO of The Limited. (The Limited has announced a search for a new chief executive.)

New York -- The Jones Group Inc. reported a loss of $80.3 million for the three months through Dec. 31, compared with a loss of $21.1 million a year earlier. The company said that marking down the value of some assets widened its loss.
 
Revenue for the fourth quarter rose 8.8% to $971.9 million, better than the $955.3 million Wall Street was expecting.

For the year, Jones Group lost $56.1 million, versus a profit of $50.7 million in 2011. Annual revenue rose to $3.8 billion from $3.79 billion.

Foothill Ranch, Calif. — The Wet Seal announced that Barbara Cook, SVP store operations, has resigned from the company to accept a new professional opportunity. Cook will remain with the company until Feb. 20 to assist with transition of her responsibilities.

John Goodman, CEO of The Wet Seal, Inc., commented: “We thank Barbara for her service to the company since joining us in late 2011 and wish her all the best in her new role.”

NEW YORK — Michael Cunningham, Aeropostale president, is retiring effective March 29, the company announced Tuesday. 

New York -- Cache announced that it has appointed Jay Margolis as chairman and CEO of Cache. Concurrent with the appointment, Thomas Reinckens will step down as chairman and CEO.
 
Margolis most recently served as president and CEO of Limited Brands’ Apparel Group (Express and Limited Stores), where he was responsible for revamping the product line and leading the successful operational turnaround of the businesses. Prior to Limited Brands, he was president, COO & director of Reebok International.
 

FOOTHILLS RANCH, Calif.  —  The Wet Seal Inc. on Friday announced that its COO is resigning as the struggling retailer initiates a corporate workforce reduction as part of a broader cost-saving initiative. In other moves, it will shutter two poor-performing Arden B stores.

The struggling chain, which also authorized a $25 million stock buyback program, said president and COO Ken Seipel resigned effective immediately. His position will not be filled. Instead, Seipel's duties will be shared between CEO John Goodman and CFO Steve Benrubi.

New York -- Australian import Lorna Jane will open the largest store in its U.S. portfolio, a 3,000-sq.-ft. unit in San Francisco, in February.
 
The retailer, which specializes in fashionable yoga clothing, opened 10 stores in Southern California in 2012, and is now expanding into the Bay Area. Lorna Jane is also looking at locations in Corte Madera, San Jose, Palo Alto and Walnut Creek, as it looks to open 15 more stores by the end of this year, the report said.