Hudson's Bay CEO Leaving Ahead of Key Shopping Season -- Update
October 20 2017 - 6:47PM
Dow Jones News
By Maria Armental
The head of Hudson's Bay Co., the owner of Saks Fifth Avenue and
Lord & Taylor, is leaving the retailer ahead of the critical
holiday shopping season and in the midst of a restructuring effort
to boost sales.
Chief Executive Gerald Storch will step down from the role Nov.
1 and return to his advisory firm Storch Advisors, the company said
Friday. He had held the post for three years and prior to serving
as Hudson's Bay leader, he was an executive at Target Corp. and had
been CEO of Toys "R" Us Inc.
Executive Chairman Richard Baker, who has previously served as
Hudson's Bay CEO, will lead the company in the interim, Hudson's
Bay said.
The company has recruited a search firm to identify a permanent
CEO.
Shares in Hudson's Bay have fallen 30% over the past 12 months.
The stock closed Friday up 0.9% at 11.96 Canadian dollars
($9.47).
The new leader will likely work on turning around the business
without the help of a major department-store acquisition. This year
Hudson's Bay has approached Macy's Inc. and then Neiman Marcus
Group LLC in potential takeover bids, but talks both times faltered
without reaching in a deal.
Hudson's Bay, which calls itself North America's oldest company,
started as a royal-chartered fur-trading company in 1670. Today, it
is largely known for its retail stores. In addition to Saks and
Lord & Taylor, it owns the Hudson's Bay chain in Canada and
Galeria Kaufhof in Germany.
Mr. Baker, in a conference call last month to discuss its
second-quarter results, said the company wasn't interested in
buying another retailer in the near-term.
"Right now, our entire team in North America and Europe is
focused on delivering a strong holiday season and best serving our
customers," Mr. Baker said Friday in a statement. "At the same
time, we are looking to the future with great anticipation as we
work on plans to maximize the strength of our leading retail and
real-estate assets."
The CEO change also comes as Jonathan Litt's Land &
Buildings Investment Management LLC has ratcheted up pressure on
Hudson's Bay management in recent months to explore options such as
taking the company private or monetizing its real-estate holdings.
Mr. Litt is well known for agitating for change in real-estate
circles.
The Canadian retailer has said it was looking into such things
as leasing space in its department stores to other brands, like
Topshop and Sephora, and selling stores.
It has also moved to restructure its North American
business.
Write to Maria Armental at maria.armental@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 20, 2017 18:32 ET (22:32 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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