Abercrombie & Fitch announced today that embattled CEO Michael Jeffries is retiring. He will also be retiring as a board member, effective immediately.
Abercrombie & Fitch’s current non-executive chairman, Arthur Martinez, will become executive chairman. Martinez has served in his position since January of this year, according to a press release.
The A&F board has set up an office of the chairman, which will consist of Martinez, COO Jonathan Ramsden, Christos Angelides, brand president of Abercrombie & Fitch and Fran Horowitz, brand president of Hollister. This group will oversee the company’s strategic direction and be responsible for managing the company’s day-to-day operations until a new CEO is appointed.
“It is impossible to overstate Mike Jeffries’ extraordinary accomplishments in building Abercrombie & Fitch to the iconic status the brand now enjoys,” said Martinez in the release. “From a standing start two decades ago, his creativity and imagination were the driving forces behind the company’s growth and success.”
Jeffries was removed as chairman in January, as Abercrombie bowed to growing pressure from activist investors who wanted him out, according to Forbes.
He has overseen 11 straight quarters of declining same-store sales. A&F, once a teen fashion leader, missed its third quarter earnings estimates in November, while cutting back its outlook in anticipation of a weak holiday sales season.