Urban Outfitters Brand President Francis Pierrel Exits
The news comes just weeks after the retailer revealed a 58 percent drop in quarterly profits, primarily within the Urban brand.
Urban Outfitters is shaking up the
C-suite.
On Friday, the retailer revealed that Francis Pierrel, president of Urban Outfitters Group, is exiting the firm.
“We appreciate the contributions he made during his tenure and wish him well in his future endeavors,” the company said in a statement. The retailer did not respond to requests for additional comment.
Pierrel joined the firm last February and was tasked with overseeing the nameplate brand's North American division. Prior to that his résumé included a stint as chief executive officer of Club Monaco, in addition to senior leadership roles at Ralph Lauren North America, Lacoste and Diesel.
The news comes just weeks after the retailer — which counts Urban Outfitters, the Anthropologie Group, Free People, Terrain and Bhldn among its brands, in addition to rental subscription service Nuuly and a food and beverage business — reported quarterly profits that were down 58 percent year-over-year.
The declines were primarily in the Urban brand — the firm's biggest — which caters to younger shoppers who generally have less money to spend on fashion. Comparable retail net sales at the slightly more upscale Anthropologie, Free People and Nuuly businesses were all up for the quarter.
The results indicated the continued bifurcation of the retail industry, with lower-income consumers increasingly cash strapped amid inflation and reconsidering discretionary purchases, while affluent and wealthy shoppers continued to spend.
That split extends to the workforce. While many companies are still struggling to find front-line employees, corporate layoffs continue to grow as some firms brace for a recession. Twitter, Meta, Amazon, Walmart and CNN have all had layoffs this year.
Wall Street, however, reacted positively to the announcement. Shares of Urban closed up 3.5 percent to $29.53 on
Friday. The stock is down 6.4 percent, year-over-year.