Management

Chico's announced that Celia Rao Visconti has been named senior vice president of marketing. Rao Visconti will report directly to Cinny Murray, brand president of Chico's, and will oversee the brand's marketing strategy and initiatives.

The Children's Place has announced the appointment of Michael Giannelli as senior vice president of design, effective March 28. Giannelli will report to Natalie Levy, executive vice president of merchandising and design. Giannelli spent 18 years with Gap Inc., culminating in his appointment as VP Gap Body.

Following its restructuring program, Family Dollar Stores announced calculated actions to reinforce its operations by chopping more than 100 jobs. The move will permit Family Dollar to sustain its streamlined group, thus facilitating the company in making rapid decisions in a vivacious working and aggressive situation.

LVMH announced the appointment of longtime Procter & Gamble veteran Christopher de Lapuente as global president and CEO of Sephora, effective March 31, 2011. Lapuente joined P&G in 1983. He spent the whole of his career with the company, and in 2004, he was appointed president, the youngest ever in P&G history.

Orchard Supply Hardware named Mark Baker president and CEO. Baker will also join Orchard Supply's board. Orchard Supply announced in December that it was looking for a replacement for then-CEO Rob Lynch, who resigned.

In a recent study by COLLOQUY, 26 percent of surveyed consumers said they're far more likely to spread the word to family, friends and co-workers about a bad experience with a product or service rather than a good one.

American Eagle Outfitters is looking for a new chief executive. James O'Donnell, 70, has been CEO since 2003 and is said to be retiring. Chairman Jay Schottenstein, a longtime retailer who also chairs the board of discount footwear chain DSW, is heading the board's search. Schottenstein was CEO of the company from 1992 to 2002.

Guess? has announced the appointment of Nancy Shachtman as its president of North America, reporting to Paul Marciano, the company's chief executive officer and vice chairman. Shachtman will oversee the company's North American retail operations for Guess and Guess by Marciano as well as Guess Wholesale, including Mexico.

Automation — long a force in agriculture and manufacturing — is accelerating in the retail sector, a trend that could hamper efforts to bring down the nation's stubbornly high jobless rate.

Levi's announced that it's appointed Rebecca Van Dyck as its global chief marketing officer. Van Dyck joins the company from Apple, where she led the worldwide marketing and communications strategies for some of the world’s most well-known and admired product launches, including introducing the iPhone, iPad and iPod and iTunes.