On Monday, Chico’s FAS named a new chief financial officer, effective June 24. David Oliver, currently the apparel brand’s chief accounting officer, will take over from Patrick Guido, who has resigned to accept a position at another company, according to a company press release. Guido’s last day will be June 23.
“David was instrumental in stewarding the Company for a year and a half as interim CFO during the early phase of the pandemic,” CEO Molly Langenstein said in a statement. “His deep knowledge of Chico's FAS, as well as his impressive financial experience and steady hand, will benefit the Company as we continue to make progress against our long-term strategic plan. Chico's FAS' financial foundation is solid, and we thank PJ for his contributions."
Guido joined Chico’s in 2021, months after the retailer brought on a new merchandise manager and a chief digital officer. He is leaving for a position that puts him closer to his family, according to the release.
Oliver, who takes over the position in a little more than a week, already has experience running Chico’s financial operations. He served as interim CFO from February 2020 until Guido’s appointment in 2021. Oliver is a decade-long veteran of Chico’s, having joined in 2012, and has held a series of financial leadership roles at the brand. Before Chico’s, he held finance roles at grocer Supervalu, the Arden Group and The Vons Companies.
In 2019, Chico’s announced plans to close 250 stores over the following three years as the company took a closer eye to operations. Since then, things have improved some for the apparel retailer. In December 2021, the retailer slowed its store closure plans as trends improved and a year ago the brand saw Q1 sales rise nearly 40% as it refreshed its merchandising strategy and consumers returned to spending.
In the retailer’s most recent quarter, net sales were relatively flat, down by about 1%, while comps fell by 0.6%. Chico’s noted that on a two-year stack, its comps were up by 40%. Operating and net income were both up slightly.
