Management

"Things have been miserable in retail. The last two [years] or three years have not been fun whatsoever."

Skechers USA said Wednesday it has hired John Vandemore to be its chief financial officer, effective within the next few weeks. Vandemore, who recently served as CFO of Mattel Inc., will assume the role from David Weinberg, who assumed the CFO role in 2009 in addition to being chief operating officer since 2006. Vandemore will…

Turnover is an ever-lingering threat to the retail industry. According to data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Job Openings and Labor Turnover program, the turnover rate in 2017 is already on a pace for a 10 percent increase over the average annual rate of the past decade. Despite the troubling trend, it’s possible to…

GameStop has appointed an interim CEO, the company announced yesterday. CEO Paul Raines has had "a medical reoccurrence." The Dallas Morning News reports the board of the video game retailer appointed Daniel DeMatteo, GameStop's executive chairman, to be interim CEO. DeMatteo, one of GameStop's co-founders, will continue to serve as executive chairman and director, the…

Styles for Less filed for bankruptcy protection this week, the latest in a string of retailers to file following declining sales. Reuters reports the teen fashion retailer listed assets and liabilities between $10 million and $50 million in its filing in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Central District of California on Monday. Styles for Less, which…

REI has appointed retail veteran Christine Putur as the company’s new chief information officer. GeekWire reports Putur started in her new role this past week. Putur has a rich history in the retail industry. Before she was named CIO of REI, she spent four years as the CIO and executive vice president for high-end fashion brand…

It's not always a foregone conclusion that those who wish to give their time and energy to a cause can find an opportunity to do so. We've recently offered our time to the academic world as “volunteers” to share our corporate experiences with college students, but haven't been able to “sell” the concept with any consistent results. We believe that most colleges are lacking in the ability to prepare students for the true challenges of the business world, and those who have spent the last 20 years or 30 years successfully managing the shifting sands of the work world offer perspective and experience.

FULLBEAUTY Brands Inc. has named Emilie Arel the company's new CEO. Arel will join the fashion brand in the next few weeks. Arel brings years of retail experience, having previously served as the CEO of the Amazon.com, Inc. subsidiary Quidsi Inc., a retail technology company with a portfolio of six different e-commerce sites. Before Quidsi, Arel…

Under Armour's chief marketing officer, Andrew Donkin, has exited the company. Ad Age reports the exit comes at a time of flux for the athletic wear brand, especially since sales have been struggling recently. Just last week Under Armour reported its first quarterly revenue decline since it went public in 2005. Donkin joined Under Armour 15…

The world of retail was rocked last month when Toys"R"Us filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Many took it as a bad omen or the proverbial “last gasp” of a dying industry. Headlines of a “Retail Crisis” permeated the news cycle and analysts poured over the reasons why — with most of the blame directed…