Dive Brief:
- Wayfair on Wednesday named Fiona Tan as its chief technology officer, effective March 1.
- Tan succeeds Jim Miller, who’s held the role since 2019, first in the interim then transitioning to permanent CTO. Miller will remain with the company during a transition period before he retires June 30, according to a company press release.
- Tan, who came to Wayfair in 2020, has over 25 years of technology experience, including six years at Walmart overseeing technology and engineering.
Dive Insight:
Tan’s appointment to chief technology officer marks the third CTO Wayfair has had since 2019. Miller took over the CTO role back in 2019 when John Mulliken announced his retirement from the company.
But Tan also brings to the role experience from one of the largest retailers in the industry: Walmart. At Walmart, Tan served as the senior vice president of U.S. technology, overseeing innovation and engineering across its site, mobile app and all associate and merchant-facing tech.
“As we move forward on our rapid growth trajectory, we are incredibly excited to welcome Fiona to the CTO role. In just two years, Fiona has established an impressive track record of success across our Technology organization and is, without a doubt, the exceptional leader and technologist we need to advance our exciting and ambitious growth plans moving forward,” Niraj Shah, Wayfair CEO and co-founder, said in a statement.
Over the past year, Wayfair has invested in its tech infrastructure, Shah told analysts in November. The company is opening new engineering hubs across North America, including in Toronto, Seattle, the San Francisco Bay Area and Austin, Texas. In November, the company launched an in-app video commerce experience dubbed Wayfair On Air, which aimed to showcase products, entertain and spark inspiration.
Wayfair benefited at the onset of the pandemic as consumers turned to e-commerce to outfit their homes — a place they were spending more of their time. But more recently, Wayfair’s sales have slipped as demand wanes. In its most recent quarter, the company reported net sales fell 18.7% to $3.1 billion.
