Walmart, Macy's veteran joins Claire's C-suite
Claire’s has made its second C-suite addition since being acquired by private equity.
The tween and teen accessories retailer has Jillian Cueff as its chief merchandising officer. Cueff brings more than two decades of leadership to Claire’s, and most recently spent more than five years at Walmart in a variety of roles, including VP of merchandising positions for the jewelry & accessories and men’s categories.
Prior to joining Walmart in 2020, Cueff spent more than 10 years at Macy’s, holding a number of positions.
The appointment comes a month after Claire’s named Athleta veteran Michelle Goad as its chief brand officer. In that role, Goad will oversee a “brand-wide reimagining of Claire’s” across every consumer touchpoint, from store environments and social presence to product and partnerships.
“Claire’s has tremendous brand equity, but sustainable growth requires disciplined execution behind the scenes,” said Lawrence Berger, partner and co-founder at Ames Watson, which finalized its $140 million acquisition of Claire’s last September, saving the company from liquidation. “Jillian brings commercial instinct and operational rigor, understanding how to build an assortment that wins with the customer while creating the structure and accountability necessary to drive performance at scale. Her leadership will be instrumental as we strengthen the foundation of the business and restore Claire’s position as the authority in piercing and trend.”
As chief merchandising officer, Cueff will oversee merchandising strategy, product selection, pricing, vendor partnerships, and presentation. The retailer says her focus will be on restoring Claire’s authority in piercing and trend while ensuring the brand “remains relevant” to Gen Z and Gen Alpha customers.
[READ MORE: Claire’s Bankruptcy: A lesson in innovation without data-driven strategy]
“Claire’s has unmatched equity in this category, but equity alone does not guarantee relevance,” said Cueff. “We’re making deliberate changes to elevate our assortment, modernize our vendor partnerships, and restore Claire’s as the destination for piercing and trend. This is about building a commercial engine that delivers growth and earns the next generation of customers.”
At the time of its recent filing, Claire’s had approximately 1,350 store locations in the United States and U.S. territories, with the total including Claire’s, Icing and shop-in-shop locations. It currently has about 900 locations.
Founded in 2018, Ames Watson is a privately-held holding company based in Columbia, Md. Brands owned or invested in by Ames Watson include Claire’s, Lids, LidsU, Champion, South Moon Under, Mitchell & Ness, Ebbets Field, Zygo, Hungry and Margaux.
