Dive Brief:
- Casper on Friday announced Joe Megibow has been appointed CEO, succeeding Emilie Arel, effective immediately. Arel has held the position since private equity firm Durational Capital Management acquired the brand in late 2021.
- Megibow was previously Purple’s CEO, from 2018 to 2021. He has also held leadership positions at Bright Cellars, Advent International, American Eagle Outfitters and Expedia.
- Arel will remain with the company through March 1 to facilitate a transition.
Dive Insight:
Casper has turned to an industry veteran to serve as its next leader.
Megibow comes with over 30 years of retail and technology experience. At Purple, he helped lead the brand to market share gains by launching retail stores, advancing its e-commerce operation and expanding into wholesale.
“No other mattress brand has cultivated the level of customer trust and love that Casper has, and it’s our time to leverage this unique position,” Megibow said in a statement. “This is the sleep brand pioneer that disrupted the industry, creating unmatched brand awareness in a sleepy category with a strong focus on innovative products that support our passion for sleep health. With recent investment from strategic partnerships, Casper is well capitalized and poised for significant growth.”
Arel, who joined Casper in 2019 as its chief commercial officer, replaced co-founder Philip Krim as CEO after the company inked a deal to be taken private by Durational Capital Management, just under two years after the brand made its public trading debut.
The executive shift comes after years of changes at the brand. Under Arel’s leadership, Casper sold off its Canadian operations, opened new concept stores and began prioritizing profitability. The DTC brand is also preparing to launch a new line of mattresses next month. The line is designed around three principles — cooling, support and comfort.
Prior to the CEO announcement, Arel last week said it would be “a very tough year” in the home sector. “It’s been a very tough couple years in home,” Arel said at the NRF’s Big Show in New York. “With an election, international turmoil — there’s a lot going on in the consumer’s mind.”
Retailers, especially those operating in the home sector, have faced challenges in recent months as consumers pull back on discretionary purchases. While many consumers — flush with stimulus money — actively sought out home goods in the early days of the pandemic when they were spending most of their time at home, retailers in the category are now facing sales declines.
Some major retailers in the sector, including Bed Bath & Beyond and Z Gallerie, filed for bankruptcy last year. Others in the space, like The Container Store and Purple, have lowered their financial outlooks in recent months. And Wayfair late last week announced it laid off another 1,650 employees — its third round of cuts in about 18 months.
