Before its Super Bowl ad could hit televisions around America, Tiffany & Co. replaced its Chief Executive Officer, Frederic Cumenal. It would seem the abrupt firing of Cumenal was due to the discouraging financial numbers possibly linking to poor holiday sales that lowered the stock.
Tiffany said that the company will be replacing Cumenal with former CEO Michael Kowalski who will only be taking over the position on an interim level. Cumenal ran the company since April 2015 and his absence in the company is preceded by the loss of the jewelry company’s top designer who left three weeks prior.
Tiffany had announced just last month that its design director Francesca Amfitheartrof was leaving the company. Not long after she departed from Tiffany, the company hired Reed Krakoff. Krakoff took over as the new artistic officer which gave him the job of overseeing jewelry and any luxury accessories.
Krakoff wasn’t the only new hire the company brought in. Tiffany hired in a replacement for chief financial officer Ralph Nicoletti, Mark Erceg. Nicoletti left the company in order to peruse the same position at Newell Brands.
During Cumenal’s time as CEO, not only were spending numbers drastically low but shares dropped by at least 6.6 percent not long after Kowalski retired back in 2015. This fall in shares is in comparison to the S&P 500s index of 12 percent.
Yet even though the low numbers proved disappointment, Cumenal’s departure of Tiffany might be an outward signal of internal problems the company might be having. Tiffany says it doesn’t expect the drop in percentage get any higher than the single digits. Tiffany also said that in the not so distant future it didn’t foresee any “significant improvement” where the economic problems are concerned.
In fact, Tiffany isn’t the only company to see a change in management. Ralf Lauren Corp. CEO Stefan Larsson left the company after a clash of creative opinion with the company’s namesake. A similar incident occurred when Barneys Chief Operating Office, Mark Lee, was replaced with Daniella Vitale. Even Givenchy’s creative director left the company.
Tiffany has been on the lookout for ways to bring in younger customers. The company has even added Lady Gaga as the new face of its jewelry and fashion collection. This Super Bowl Sunday marked off the beginning of the company’s new campaign. The ad with Lady Gaga was shot in black and white while Gaga spoke about her creativity and her rebellious streak.
Tiffany also says that this upcoming Valentine’s day is expected to be a top selling holiday for the company which in turn might boost up sales.
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