Brands
PVH Corp.
PVH Corp. announced that Trish Donnelly, CEO of PVH Americas and Calvin Klein Global, will be leaving PVH to pursue other opportunities.
She will remain in an advisory role through Nov. 30 to facilitate the transition. PVH intends to separate her responsibilities into two roles–a regional leadership role for PVH Americas and a global brand leadership role for Calvin Klein–to strengthen the company’s ability to execute its PVH+ Plan.
The company has launched a global search for both positions. In the interim, Stefan Larsson, CEO of PVH Corp., will lead PVH Americas and Calvin Klein Global, working closely with the leadership of both organizations and their teams.
Also at PVH, Tommy Hilfiger appointed Nadia Azria to the newly created position of chief merchandising officer, Tommy Hilfiger Global, effective Nov. 1.
Azria will play a critical role in delivering on the strategy of raising consumer desire and strengthening its premium positioning as a global lifestyle brand, and this new role will drive cross-category alignment and growth across the Tommy Hilfiger and Tommy Jeans labels. To help bring the brand’s cohesive and elevated vision to life, Azria will be the business lead for the strategic management and creation of all Tommy Hilfiger’s global products, including merchandising, product development, buying and planning, operations and collaborations.
Azria, who is a French and Swiss national based in Amsterdam, has more than 30 years of experience working with global fashion and retail brands. She joins Tommy Hilfiger from Nike, most recently as vice president of merchandising One Nike Market Place.
Related Stories
Caleres
Caleres, a portfolio of consumer-driven footwear brands, appointed Jack Calandra as senior vice president and chief financial officer (CFO), effective Sept. 12.
Calandra will succeed Ken Hannah, who has served as CFO of Caleres for the last seven years. He will have responsibility for the company’s finance, accounting, investor relations, external reporting, treasury and tax functions.
Calandra most recently served as CFO of a.k.a. Brands. Prior to that time, he served as executive vice president, CFO and treasurer for Tailored Brands.
Caleres’ products are available in the nearly 1,000 retail stores it operates, in hundreds of major department and specialty stores, branded e-commerce sites, and on many additional third-party retail websites. Its brands include Famous Footwear, Sam Edelman, Naturalizer, Allen Edmonds, Vionic, Vince, Franco Sarto, Dr. Scholl’s Shoes, LifeStride, Blowfish Malibu, Bzees and Ryka.
True Classic
True Classic appointed Cédric Fletcher as chief product officer.
As the company continues its growth trajectory, Fletcher will expand the True Classic brand with new men’s wear product categories. He joined True Classic from his previous role as chief merchandising officer at Under Armour.
Founded in 2019, with headquarters in Los Angeles, True Classic is a direct-to-consumer men’s wear company reimagining functional yet fashionable basics and accessories for the modern man. The company offers ultra-soft, fitted tees, crews, v-necks and long-sleeves that are intentionally designed to fit all body types.
Culp Home Fashions
Culp Inc. announced that Tommy Bruno will be joining the company as executive vice president of Culp Home Fashions, effective Sept. 6.
The company also announced the planned retirement of Sandy Brown, president of the Culp Home Fashions division, effective Dec. 31.
Bruno has served as the vice president of business development, alternative channels, for Tempur + Sealy since 2018. He will report to Culp Inc.’s president and CEO, Iv Culp, and is expected to assume the role of president of Culp Home Fashions upon Brown’s retirement.
Brown will retire after 39 years with the company. Over the coming months, she will work closely with Bruno to ensure a smooth transition and will provide support as a strategic advisor following her retirement.
Culp, is a manufacturer and marketer of mattress fabrics for bedding and upholstery fabrics for residential and commercial furniture. It has manufacturing and sourcing operations located in the United States, Canada, China, Vietnam, Turkey and Haiti.
Retail
Bed Bath & Beyond
Bed Bath & Beyond elevated longtime company vet Laura Crossen, who was promoted to replace former chief accounting officer John Barresi earlier this summer from her role as SVP of treasury, tax and finance transformation, to interim chief financial officer in addition to her chief accounting duties effective Sept. 5, the company reported in an SEC filing Tuesday after former CFO Gustavo Arnal apparently committed suicide last week.
Chico’s
Chico’s FAS Inc. appointed former Aveda and Coca-Cola Company executive Leana Less as senior vice president of marketing.
Less will lead marketing efforts for all three Chico’s FAS brands and outlets–Chico’s, White House Black Market and Soma, as well as drive customer acquisition, spearhead the Chico’s, WHBM and Soma loyalty programs, and all other end-to-end marketing responsibilities at Chico’s FAS.
Less most recently worked as head of consumer marketing at Aveda, a subsidiary business of Estée Lauder, where she helped drive significant e-commerce growth, contributing to the brand’s overall expansion efforts. Prior to that role, she served as vice president of global connections and media at Coca-Cola Company.
As of July 30, the company operated 1,258 stores in the U.S. and sold merchandise through 58 international franchise locations in Mexico and two domestic franchise airport locations.
Francesca’s
Francesca’s Acquisition, a specialty retailer, announced the appointment of two technology leaders to its executive team.
Mike Early will join Francesca’s as senior vice president and chief technology officer. Early has spent nearly 13 years with Build-A-Bear, where he most recently served as CIO responsible for global technology strategy and execution. Prior to that, he spent almost 12 years with Macy’s, where he held various leadership roles supporting its apparel retail business.
Laura Schick joined Francesca’s as vice president for e-commerce.
Francesca’s operates a nationwide chain of boutiques with a merchandise assortment that includes apparel, jewelry, accessories and gifts. Today, Francesca’s has approximately 454 boutiques in 45 states and also serves its customers through francescas.com.
Massmart
Walmart-backed South African retailer Massmart announced CEO Mitchell Slape’s successor.
Slape will step down from his role on Dec. 31, after taking up the role in 2019. He will hand over the reins to Jonathan Molapo, who becomes CEO on Jan. 1.
Molapo joined Massmart from Astron Energy, where he was CEO from June 2018 to December 2021.
Slape played a key role in initiating Massmart’s turnaround since his appointment to lead the business in September 2019.
Textiles
Renewcell
Renewcell, makers of Circulose fibers, announced that Toby Lawton will join the company as chief financial officer (CFO), effective Oct. 1.
Lawton was most recently CFO at SCA, a Swedish forest industry company.
Accelerating Circularity
Accelerating Circularity announced that Steven Bethell of Bank and Vogue joined the organization’s board of directors.
Bethell’s parent company, Bank and Vogue, is a full-service broker of used goods in North America. The group’s retail arm is Beyond Retro, which is a leading vintage fashion firm in Europe. BVH Services is the group’s innovation hub, which works to spearhead and develop groundbreaking innovations across the fashion field, specifically centered around sustainability.
Accelerating Circularity is a nonprofit that creates new supply chains and business models to turn textile waste into mainstream raw materials.
Unifi
Unifi Inc., makers of Repreve recycled fibers, announced the election of Frank Blake to the company’s board of directors, effective Sept. 5.
Blake currently serves as the non-executive chairman of Delta Air Lines Inc.’s board of directors. He served as chairman and CEO of The Home Depot from 2007 until November 2014 and chairman until his retirement in February 2015. Blake is also a member of the board of Macy’s Inc.
Carbios
Carbios appointed Pascal Bricout as chief strategy and financial officer and a member of the company’s executive committee.
Bricout will oversee the management and organization of Carbios’ finance division. He will also steer the company’s strategy, investor relations and the launch of the company’s corporate social responsibility policy. Prior to joining Carbios, Bricout served as chief financial officer for Michelin in Asia.
Carbios develops enzymatic solutions dedicated to the end-of-life of plastic and textile polymers.