The Rue21 Inc. teen specialty chain, after experiencing rapid growth across the country, has initiated a shake-up in its top management, ousting chief executive officer Robert Fisch and bringing talent in from the outside.
The company said the board has launched a search for a new ceo, but did not provide a reason for Fisch’s sudden departure. The teen specialty sector has been troubled in the last few years and last month mall operators Simon Property Group and General Growth Properties were among an investors’ group led by Associated Brands Group that bought Aéropostale out of bankruptcy to keep the chain operating.
At Rue21, Keith McDonough, the chief financial officer, has been appointed interim ceo. He has served as Rue21’s cfo for 13 years and has more than three decades of senior leadership experience in the retail industry, the company said.
The company also appointed Nina Barjesteh chief merchandising officer and Elizabeth Hodges chief customer officer, a new position.
Barjesteh, who has more than 20 years of experience in the retail and fashion industry, joins Rue21 from Target Corp., where she was vice president, general merchandise manager of the women’s apparel division. She will be responsible for all merchandising initiatives. Barjesteh succeeds Kim Reynolds.
As chief customer officer, Hodges will oversee brand marketing and advertising initiatives. She joins Rue21 from Chico’s FAS, where she spent nine years, most recently as senior vice president of customer experience. Earlier in her career, she worked at J.C. Penney Co. Inc., American Eagle Outfitters and Lane Bryant.
Keith McDonough said: “We thank Bob Fisch and Kim Reynolds for their 15 years of collaboration and passion in building Rue21 into a leading teen specialty apparel retailer. We are very excited to have Nina Barjesteh and Liz Hodges join the Rue21 leadership team. They both will play key roles as we further position our business for long-term growth.”
Based just outside Pittsburgh in Warrendale, Pa., Rue21 operates 1,213 stores in 48 states. It’s been a private company since 2013.
The company plans to open about 40 stores and upgrade 100 existing stores in fiscal 2016. The company also said e-commerce sales grew 90 percent in the first six months of the current fiscal year. Rue21 is launching ship-to-store and CRM this year.
“We continue to execute on the strategic initiatives we set out for 2016 and the longer-term, including strengthening our brand, our merchandise assortments and our omnichannel capabilities, in addition to increasing our square footage,” said McDonough. “Our strong management team, composed of tenured retail executives with deep experience in all aspects of our business, complemented by the addition of Nina and Liz, is well-positioned to take Rue21 to the next level of growth.”