Brands
Fast Retailing announced that Andrew Rosen will step down as CEO of Theory and become an advisor, effective April 1, and will pursue other interests.
At that time, Dinesh Tandon, currently Theory’s chief operating officer, will assume the role of CEO and work closely with Rosen and Theory chairman Kazumi Yanai to ensure a successful transition.
Theory was founded by Rosen in 1997 and the company was acquired by Fast Retailing in 2009. Tandon joined Theory in 2013 as CEO of the Greater China and Southeast Asia market, based in Hong Kong. He was appointed Theory’s chief operating officer, based at the company’s global headquarters in New York City, in 2017. Yanai has served as Theory’s chairman since 2012.
Descente
Japanese sportswear firm Descente Ltd. appointed Shuichi Koseki, senior managing executive officer in charge of parent company Itochu Corp.’s textile division, as president, which will take effect in June pending shareholder approval.
Koseki replaces Masatoshi Ishimoto, a member of the company’s founding family. The move follows Itochu’s hostile takeover of Descente, which owns the rights to sell such brands as Le Coq Sportif, Munsingwear and Umbro in Japan and other parts of Asia.
In the hostile takeover bid, Itochu increased its stake in Descente from 30.44 percent to 40 percent through a tender offer bid conducted from Jan. 31 to March 14. The trading house now has veto power over crucial management decisions.
Ishimoto was appointed president of Descente in 2013, marking the first time in 19 years that a member of the sportswear company’s founding family had taken the helm instead of an Itochu-appointed chief executive.
Koseki, who joined Itochu in 1979, has been responsible for the trading house’s textile business and operations in China for many years.
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Columbia Sportswear Co, announced that its board of directors elected Kevin Mansell to serve as a director and member of the nominating and corporate governance and audit committees.
Mansell spent over 35 years at Kohl’s Corp., most recently serving as its chairman, CEO and president prior to retiring in May 2018. Ed George, a long-time director, has decided to retire.
The supervisory board of Adidas AG announced candidates that will stand for election as shareholder representatives at the annual general meeting on May 9.
Those candidates include Jing Ulrich, managing director and vice chairman, Asia Pacific at JPMorgan Chase & Co.; Thomas Rabe, chairman and CEO of Bertelsmann, and Bodo Uebber, member of the board of management of Daimler AG.
The company said Dr. Frank Appel, CEO of Deutsche Post AG; Katja Kraus, author and managing partner of Jung von Matt/sports GmbH, and Willi Schwerdtle, independent management consultant, will not stand for re-election.
Igor Landau will continue to serve as chairman of the supervisory board until the regular annual general meeting of Adidas AG in 2020, in order to accompany the current five-year strategic business plan, “Creating the New,” through to completion in the 2020 financial year and to ensure a smooth hand-over to a new supervisory board chairman. Accordingly, he is standing for re-election for a term of one year.
Herbert Kauffmann is standing for re-election for a term of two years. The other current shareholder representatives–Ian Gallienne, Kathrin Menges and Nassef Sawiris–will stand for re-election for a new five-year term of office.
Textiles
American Silk Mills
American Silk Mills announced that Todd H. Nifong joined the company as director of residential sales and new business.
Nifong will report to David Corbin, CEO of American Silk Mills, and will lead a sales team that will focus on the residential, jobber, designer and e-commerce end markets. Under his direction, Nifong will be responsible for the development of the company’s sales and marketing strategies, as well as exploring and validating growth opportunities in adjacent markets.
Nifong has more than 17 years of experience in the textile and home furnishings industries, with executive positions at Altizer & Co., Decorative Textiles and Swavelle Performance Fabrics. Nifong also serves as chairman of the International Textile Alliance (ITA) Educational Foundation, and has been a past recipient of the ITA Future of the Industry Award as well as the ITA Best in Innovation Award.
American Silk Mills, founded in 2017, was acquired by Sutlej Textiles and Industries in November 2017. ASM products include fine jacquard fabrics, high quality silks, a variety of velvets and Sensuede, an eco-friendly synthetic suede.
Retail
HBC
HBC announced that its board of directors appointed Stephanie Coyles as an independent director of the company. Including Coyles, the company’s board now comprises 13 directors.
Coyles brings more than 25 years of experience in advanced analytics, digital transformation and marketing across a diverse set of North American retail and consumer-facing companies. She currently serves on the board at Sun Life Financial Inc., a Toronto-based life insurance company, and Metro Inc., a Canadian grocery store chain.
She spent most of her career as a management consultant and eventually, as a partner, at McKinsey & Company.
Technology
OrderMyGear
E-commerce technology company OrderMyGear appointed Wade Williams, to the position of chief technology officer (CTO).
Formerly CTO of Paylease, Williams brings more than 20 years tech experience, from his start in the defense industry to his time at the United Nations to his leadership roles at multiple startups and high growth software companies.
As CTO of OrderMyGear, Williams will lead the company’s engineering and IT teams, playing a key role in the company’s goal of achieving $1 billion in gross merchandise value. OrderMyGear drives growth and saves time for team sporting goods dealers, apparel decorators and companies selling to groups or teams.