The US lingerie supplier Victoria’s Secret & Co. announced a far-reaching reform of its management structures on Tuesday evening. The aim is to combine the three business areas of Victoria’s Secret, Pink and Beauty in a common organization and thus create better conditions for “the implementation of the strategy and the achievement of long-term growth goals”, the company said in a statement.
At the same time, costs are to be reduced: the streamlining of structures would eliminate a total of around 160 management positions, Victoria’s Secret announced. The clothing supplier intends to invest the funds released in growth initiatives. The company estimated annual savings of approximately $40 million. According to a statement, the job cuts will initially result in one-time charges of around 30 million US dollars, which are to be booked in the second quarter of the current financial year.
As part of the structural reform, the Group created three new management positions that report directly to CEO Martin Waters. Amy Hauk has been promoted to CEO of lingerie brands Victoria’s Secret and Pink. So far she had only managed the young label Pink. Greg Unis, who was most recently responsible for the cosmetics lines of both brands, has assumed the position of Chief Growth Officer and in this role is now responsible for a wide range of responsibilities, including the development of new business models, international expansion and possible acquisitions.
In addition, Victoria’s Secret signed a new addition: Christine Rupp was appointed to the newly created position of Chief Customer Officer. In the future, she will manage the stationary and digital retail trade and link both sales channels into a “seamless” unit. Rupp comes from the Albertsons supermarket chain, where she most recently served as chief customer and digital officer. Prior to that, she held various leadership positions at Microsoft and Amazon.