Dive Brief:
- Bath & Body Works has appointed Veronique Gabai-Pinsky as the company’s first chief brand and product officer, effective May 18, according to a Wednesday press release.
- Gabai-Pinsky will report to CEO Daniel Heaf and is tasked with elevating the company’s consumer proposition, advancing its fragrance leadership, pushing innovation and reigniting the brand.
- Gabai-Pinsky most recently founded her own brand, Veronique Gabai. She has served as the president of Vera Wang Group, and spent 13 years at The Estée Lauder Companies, including as global president of the company’s fragrance division and independent skin care brands.
Dive Insight:
Gabai-Pinsky is formally joining Bath & Body Works’ executive team after working as a creative product and brand adviser with the company since last November.
“This is a critical role for Bath & Body Works as we continue to transform the business, modernize our consumer offering and return the brand to growth,” Heaf said in a statement. “Since joining us as an adviser, Veronique has already made an impact, bringing renewed creativity and a strong instinct for how to connect authentically with today’s consumers.”
At the end of last year Bath & Body Works revealed its “Consumer First Formula,” a strategy to drive sustainable, long-term growth.
As part of the initiative Heaf warned that the company would exit categories that haven’t been successful, including hair and men’s grooming. Earlier this month the retailer said it would pull back on its laundry offering, only months after expanding its product offering into dryer sheets.
The retailer also identified a number of other points of friction, including a reliance on collaborations, frequent promotions and a lack of growth in its total customer base.
With its strategy under way, Bath & Body Works launched an official U.S. storefront on Amazon as a means of reigniting the brand, and to capture gray market sales.
In its most recent earnings, Q4 net sales were down 2.3% year over year to $2.7 billion. Net income was down 11% to $403 million.
