Gap Taps Syngal to Be Old Navy's President -- Update
14 April 2016 - 10:19AM
Dow Jones News
By Maria Armental
Gap Inc. named longtime executive Sonia Syngal as president of
Old Navy as the retailer seeks to rekindle sales and expand
companywide the "fast-fashion" model that helped turn the brand
into its sales engine.
Ms. Syngal succeeds Stefan Larsson, who left last year to become
Ralph Lauren Corp.'s chief executive. Her base salary was set at
$875,000.
Ms. Syngal, who most recently served as executive vice president
of global supply chain and product operations, previously led Old
Navy's international division along with Gap's and Banana
Republic's European operations.
Old Navy accounted for 42% of the retailer's sales last year and
was the only brand to report a sales increase from the year
earlier. However, Old Navy's momentum has slowed, with sales
increasing 1% in the year ended Jan. 30, down from 6% a year
earlier.
Mr. Larsson had been credited with turning around Old Navy's
fortunes by adopting a sales model popularized by fast-fashion
chains that allows retailers to respond more quickly to sales
trends.
Meanwhile, Jill Stanton, who joined the company in 2012 as a
creative adviser for Old Navy and had led the Old Navy brand on a
temporary basis since September, will stay on as a strategic
adviser during an unspecified transitional period, the company
said.
In addition, the retailer appointed Michael Yee as executive
vice president for global supply chain, sourcing and production,
and Shawn Curran as executive vice president for global supply
chain logistics and production operations. The two, who previously
reported to Ms. Syngal in similar capacities, will now report
directly to Chief Executive Art Peck. No additional information was
given.
The San Francisco-based retailer, which after four consecutive
quarters of falling sales reported its first annual sales decline
since fiscal year 2011, warned this month that high inventories
would pressure first-quarter results. Gap is scheduled to report
first-quarter results on May 19.
The company's stock closed Wednesday at $23.93, down 42% over
the past 12 months.
Write to Maria Armental at maria.armental@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 13, 2016 20:04 ET (00:04 GMT)
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