Sonja Balodis will not join the management of the Witt Group.
At the end of October, the Otto subsidiary Witt Group announced that Sonja Balodis would strengthen the management of the Witt Group as of January 1st. It should cover international markets, menswear, quality management and the brand ‘Behold!’ responsible. Now comes the disillusionment as Balodis will take on the role in which she will be responsible for marketing to international markets, menswear, quality management and corporate responsibility and the ‘Look!’ brand. should be responsible not to compete.
“We were very surprised by the decision made by Sonja Balodis, especially after the signing of the contract and official communication,” said a spokesman for the textile retailer at the request of FashionUnited on Friday. “After intensive discussions, we were convinced that her personality and her experience would have suited us very well.”
Return to Rottendorf?
According to reports in the industry magazine Textilwirtschaft, Sonja Balodis is set to return to the S.Oliver Group. The manager is a close confidant of S.Oliver owner Bernd Freier and is soon to join the company’s board of directors as product manager. Balodis worked for the Rottendorf fashion group for 13 years, most recently as managing director of the Comma brand, and left the company in July 2020. She then worked for a year as product manager at the Bodelshausen fashion label Marc Cain.
The personnel merry-go-round at the S.Oliver Group seems to be turning quickly. On Tuesday it was announced that Managing Director Claus-Dietrich Lahrs is leaving the fashion company after three years. The textile industry has already reported on the potential successor Jürgen Otto, who comes from the automotive industry but has no professional experience in the fashion sector.
At the request of FashionUnited, the S.Oliver Group commented neither on the possible return of Sonja Balodis nor on speculation about Claus-Dietrich Lahrs’ successor.