Benetton changes up executive management

Rome Benetton Group SpA said late Thursday it has named Franco Furno and Biagio Chiarolanza to jointly run the company, according to a report by Wall Street Journal.

Furno and Chiarolanza will each receive seats on Benetton's board and will hold the title of co-chief executive, according to a Benetton spokesman.

According to WSJ, the change at the helm is the latest sign of the Benetton family's struggle to set a course for the iconic clothing retailer in an increasingly cut-throat sector, which includes Sweden’s popular Hennes & Mauritz brand.

On Thursday, Benetton said net profit for full-year 2009 fell 21% to 122 million Euros ($168 million), as sales fell 3.7% to 2.05 billion Euros.

Gerolamo Caccia Dominioni will formally step down as CEO in April.

Benetton said it expects revenue in the first three months of 2010 to be in line with revenue from the same quarter of 2009, when revenue stood at 449 million Euros.