Shuffle Board: Beyond Shakes Up C-Suite, Authentic Expands to Africa

Retail

Bed Bath & Beyond

Beyond, Inc. announced that, in connection with changes to its leadership structure, Chandra Holt’s employment as the chief executive officer and co-principal executive officer of Bed Bath & Beyond is over. According to an SEC filing, Beyond expects to enter into a separation agreement with Holt—who was appointed to the role in February—containing a general release of claims in exchange for certain separation benefits.

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The board of directors appointed Dave Nielsen, CEO of Overstock, to serve as the company’s president and principal executive officer. Beyond also announced additional organizational changes to its leadership structure, including the elimination of the co-chief executive officer roles and of the dual chief merchant roles.

Gap

Specialty retailer Gap announced Sven Gerjets has joined the company as chief technology officer, per a message CEO Richard Dickson wrote to employees. In this role, Gerjets will oversee the company’s digital improvements, data science and tech portfolio, reporting directly to Dickson. He joins Gap from Mattel, where he served as CTO. He previously held roles at companies including AT&T, Time Warner and DirecTV.

Brands

Authentic Brands Group

Brand management firm Authentic Brands Group announced the appointment of Warren Bowers as general manager of Africa. In this newly created position, Bowers will oversee Authentic’s expansion strategy across Africa, cultivating strategic partnerships to drive value and growth for the brands in its portfolio. Bowers previously served as the managing director at Bounty Brands and senior retail director at Adidas, bringing over 25 years of experience in the fashion, outdoor and sports sectors to the role.

Saucony

Global performance running and lifestyle brand Saucony has appointed Joy Allen-Altimare as global chief marketing officer. In this role, Allen-Altimare will be responsible for developing and executing Saucony’s global branding initiatives, including brand positioning, direct-to-consumer strategies, advertising, digital strategies, international growth initiatives and expansion of the brand’s global lifestyle business. Allen-Altimare will report directly to Rob Griffiths, Saucony’s global brand president, and join the brand’s senior leadership team.

Delta Apparel

Activewear and lifestyle apparel firm Delta Apparel has made a series of executive leadership changes over the past two months.

In mid-May, Robert Humphreys submitted his resignation—effective June 29—as chairman of the board and chief executive officer, at the behest of a request by the company’s independent directors. Humphreys had been with the company since 1998. He was also asked to resign from all positions at companies with ties to Delta Apparel, per an SEC filing. Tim Pruban was appointed as chief restructuring officer, advising the board on succession planning regarding Humphrey’s departure.

On May 30, Timothy Brog resigned from service on the Delta Apparel board of directors and all subcommittees of the board. On May 31, David Whalen resigned from service on the board and all subcommittees as well.

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On June 5, Delta Apparel’s executive vice president and chief administrative officer, Justin Grow, amended the effective date of his resignation from July 2 to June 5. On June 6, Matthew Miller, president of Delta Group, resigned.

The North Face

Kevin Fegans has joined The North Face as senior director, PR and global brand communications, according to a LinkedIn post. Fegans said he spent the last 20 years leading the public relations, corporate and brand communications strategies for brands including Louis Vuitton, Asos and Forever 21.

Paka

Sustainable alpaca clothing brand Paka announced that Brian Thompson has joined the company as general manager. Thompson has held senior leadership roles focused on driving sustainable product design and innovation for leading brands in the outdoor industry. He joins Paka after over four years as vice president of product at Prana , a leader in sustainable outdoor fashion. Thompson will lean on his experience in the active apparel space to help guide Paka’s expansion into new product verticals and consumer markets.

In addition to welcoming a new general manager, Paka introduces an advisory board to guide the brand through a new era of growth. Russ Hopcus, long-term outdoor industry executive and former president of Prana Living, Pete LaBore, a tenured outdoor executive with Backcountry, Reformation and current CEO at Christy Sports, and the leadership team at Yeti Capital will make up the brand’s new board.

Textiles

eVent Fabrics

Advanced performance textiles producer eVent Fabrics has named Shannon Walton its new marketing and branding manager. Walton brings more than 20 years of product and advocacy knowledge to eVent through her leadership roles in brand development, marketing and PR. Most recently, she served as the executive director for the Redside Foundation, which supports the health of the outdoor guiding community. In addition to her work in the North American and European markets, Walton will collaborate with eVent’s Asian headquarters and product development center in Shanghai.

Logistics

Vecna Robotics

Flexible material handling automations solution firm Vecna Robotics has appointed Michael Helmbrecht as chief operating officer. In this role, Helmbrecht will oversee operations, manufacturing, IT, product and customer success. As a former Dell, Lifesize and Ring Central executive, he brings nearly 20 years of operations, product and partnership experience to the role.

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