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This week's hiring roundup includes news from Edgewell Personal Care, Sephora, Stitch Fix and Weee!
Welcome to On the Move. Every week, The Current is rounding up the comings and goings of leaders at brands and retailers across the ecommerce, retail and CPG landscape.
This week, The Honest Company and Calvin Klein get set to head into 2023 with new leadership. Meanwhile, Ulta Beauty, Stitch Fix and Asos are adding experienced executives to their boards.
Check out the latest moves:
Carla Vernón is set to become the next CEO of The Honest Company, effective Jan. 9, 2023. The former Amazon and General Mills executive was tapped to lead the digitally native clean lifestyle brand as part of a succession plan that will see current CEO Nick Vlahos step down from day-to-day operations after nearly six years.
Vernón most recently served as VP of consumables categories at Amazon, where she helped to advance the beauty category with virtual lipstick try-on and the Holiday Beauty Haul sale event. She also served as division president for natural and organic at General Mills as Nature Valley and Lärabar found new growth.
Founded in 2012 by actress Jessica Alba, The Honest Company makes products in personal care, beauty, baby and household products.
Eva Serrano. (Courtesy photo)
Eva Serrano was appointed to the role of global brand president at Calvin Klein. Serrano joins PVH-owned Calvin Klein from Zara parent Inditex, where she held roles across multiple brands and gained experience in various disciplines including product, marketing, consumer experience and supply chain. Most recently, she was president of Inditex Greater China. Serrano is stepping into the leadership role after the August departure of Trish Donnelly, who served as CEO of PVH Americas and Calvin Klein.
Poppi, the prebiotic soda brand, announced several new executive hires. This came at the same time as the brand closed a new investment of $25 million from CAVU Consumer Partners.
Deborah Yeh was promoted to global chief purpose officer at Sephora, according to WWD. Yeh previously served as EVP, global chief purpose officer and CMO of Sephora North America. In the role, the 10-year Sephora veteran will further define the company’s purpose and corporate social responsibility priorities, then bring them to fruition. Yeh previously worked at Gap Inc. and Target.
Deborah Yeh. (Photo via Sephora)
John Burry was hired as chief merchandising officer at ethnic egrocer Weee! Burry brings grocery experience that includes more than 20 years with Tesco, where he served as director of innovation and futures. “His experience blending the capabilities of one of the world's largest retailers with his entrepreneurial mindset will be an invaluable asset as we look ahead to future growth,” said Weee! CEO Larry Liu.
Robert Schmidt was appointed to the role of chief accounting officer at Edgewell Personal Care. Previously, Schmidt held the same role at ADC Therapeutics and Newell Brands. He also held leadership roles at Tyco International and Celgene Corporation. Schmidt will be based in the consumer products company’s Shelton, Connecticut, office, reporting to CFO Dan Sullivan.
Heidi G. Petz, the president and COO of Sherwin Williams, was elected to the board of directors at Ulta Beauty. Petz joined Sherwin Williams following the acquisition of The Valspar Corporation in 2017. She previously held leadership roles at Newell Rubbermaid, Target Corporation and PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Kofi Amoo-Gottfried, the chief marketing officer of DoorDash, is joining the board of directors at apparel service Stitch Fix. The ninth member of the Stitch Fix board, Amoo-Gottfried brings experience in brand and marketing from Bacardi and Meta, as well as work on advertising for brands such as Kellogg’s, Coca Cola and Nike. Amoo-Gottfried was also the founder of Publicis West Africa.
Wei Gao was appointed non-executive director at ecommerce fashion retailer Asos. Gao previously served as chief operating officer at events platform Hopin, and brings experience from Amazon as a VP of grocery tech, product and supply chain, as well as technical advisor to the CEO.
LadderUp is aiming for 50% LGBTQ+ and BIPOC participation. Shopify will provide access to its platform.
LadderUp will include an 8-week ecommerce course. (Courtesy photo)
Shipt is launching a new accelerator program designed to provide ecommerce tools for local retailers.Called LadderUp, the program is centered on equity. Target-owned delivery owned Shipt said conversations with business owners have revealed that local entrepreneurs face “gaps” in technology, but they also want to participate in ecommerce platforms. The COVID-19 pandemic was especially difficult for Black business owners, who saw earnings drop between 11-28% in 2019-2020, as compared to the earnings decrease of 5-17% for the rest of the population.
With the new program, the company’s goal is to reach at least 50% LGBTQ+ and BIPOC participation in the program.
Shipt is aiming to serve businesses in Atlanta, Birmingham, Alabama, Detroit, Houston and Washington, D.C.
Target categories include: grocery/beverage, health, beauty, and floral/gifts retailers.
“Working with small businesses to build up their capabilities is a key part of our commitment to help create healthier, more resilient and equitable communities,” said CEO Kamau Witherspoon. “We recognize the unique role that we can play in both combating hunger in under-resourced communities and boosting small, local retailers that are so vital to communities across our country.”
Education: Business owners who are selected will receive an 8-week course with industry leaders that covers business-building topics including finances, efficiency, marketing, ecommerce 101, the basics of using Shipt, and legal knowledge.
Funding: Upon completion, retailers will provide $5,000 for businesses to invest in ecommerce.
Shopify access: Shopify, which is partnering with Shipt, is also providing to its access for a limited amount of time to help business owners build an online storefront and manage inventory. The program will also provide technical assistance.
Applications are open Feb. 6- March 6.