Ronald Friedman, Co-Leader, Retail/Consumer Products Industry Group, Quoted in LA Times Article, "New CEO to Succeed Paul Marciano at Guess."
Los Angeles Times
By Tiffany Hsu and Shan Li
Excerpt:
Los Angeles fashion firm Guess Inc., known for its tight jeans and beach babe models, is replacing co-founder Paul Marciano with a new chief executive from outside the company.
In August, Victor Herrero, 46, will step into Marciano’s shoes after spending a dozen years building up operations in Europe and Asia for Inditex, the Spanish apparel giant that owns the Zara and Stradivarius brands.
Companies such as Guess, which still does major business in denim, have struggled as the rise of yoga-wear eats into jeans sales. Bringing in Herrero, who has an overseas background as well as experience in fast fashion, is a savvy move, said Ron Friedman, a retail expert at Los Angeles accounting and consulting firm Marcum.
“Somebody has to come in and shake it up, do something different,” Friedman said.
Same-store sales were negative last quarter in North America, but retail performance and stronger wholesale shipments to Europe helped dull the sting, according to the company. Nearly 46% of revenue and 59% of profit from the year ended Jan. 31 came from Europe and Asia.
