Dive Brief:
- Among a number of leadership changes, Torrid announced on Tuesday the appointment of Lisa Harper as the company's CEO, according to a press release.
- Liz Muñoz, who was previously in the CEO role, is now the company’s chief creative officer. Additionally, Tanner MacDiarmid was named the interim chief financial officer. All roles are effective immediately.
- Michael Shaffer, who was the former CFO of PVH Corp. has joined the board of directors as an independent member and chair of the audit committee.
Dive Insight:
In a C-suite game of musical chairs, Torrid named a member of the company’s board of directors to its chief executive spot, while its previous CEO is now the chief creative officer.
Torrid's new CEO was previously the chief executive officer of Belk, Gymboree and Hot Topic (which used to own Torrid). Harper has been on Torrid’s board of directors since 2008 and will remain a member while in her new position.
“Lisa brings tremendous direct-to-consumer experience to her new role at Torrid,” Stefan Kaluzny, chairman of Torrid’s board of directors, said in a statement.
Meanwhile, as chief creative officer, Muñoz will focus on product, design, fabrication, sourcing, technical fit, marketing and merchandising, among other tasks. “I am really excited to be able to once again focus on providing outstanding product for our amazing customers,” Muñoz said in a statement.
Muñoz was CEO from August 2018 through last month, and notably was the company’s CEO during its IPO filing in 2021. She worked in other roles at the DTC company, including president and senior vice president of product. Prior to her time at Torrid, Muñoz was with Lucky Brand in a number of roles, including president and senior vice president of design and merchandising.
MacDiarmid will step into the role of interim CFO, taking the place of George Wehlitz, who recently retired. Wehlitz will act as an advisor during the time of transition, and as Torrid searches for a permanent chief financial officer. “We have incredible bench strength in our finance team, and I'm confident in their abilities to support towards growth,” Wehlitz said on a March call with analysts regarding his transition out of the company.
Torrid focuses on apparel for women in sizes 10 through 30, and delivered $1.3 billion in net sales in 2021, but swung to a net loss of nearly $30 million. The direct-to-consumer retailer saw 9% growth in average spend per customer last year, and over 63% of its sales came from e-commerce.
