Dive Brief:
- Bonobos CEO Micky Onvural is ending her tenure at the menswear brand after five years at the company, according to a LinkedIn post published Tuesday.
- Onvural is taking on a new role on Monday as the chief marketing and communications officer at TIAA, the Teachers Insurance and Annuity Association of America-College Retirement Equities Fund.
- She joined Bonobos in 2016 as chief marketing officer. Onvural assumed the role of CEO in 2018 after Bonobos co-founder Andy Dunn stepped down from the role to focus on his position as senior vice president of digital consumer brands at Walmart.
Dive Insight:
Onvural said leaving Bonobos for the retirement firm is “definitely bittersweet.” She led Bonobos shortly after Walmart acquired the brand for $310 million in cash alongside a string of other e-commerce acquisitions, such as ModCloth and Moosejaw.
During her time at the company, Onvural listed tech and systems improvements, store openings and several marketing campaigns and product launches as some of the projects her team has achieved. But she considers Bonobos finding its “voice” as the team’s “greatest achievement.”
“With that comes many mixed emotions,” Onvural wrote about her departure on LinkedIn. “I am excited about what is to come next; I am sad to leave behind the people and culture that I love; and I am also incredibly proud of all that we have built together over the last five years.”
Bonobos’ path at Walmart has not always been smooth. In the same month Walmart sold ModCloth to financial services firm Go Global Retail in 2019, Bonobos laid off employees. According to Vox’s Recode, Walmart was considering putting Bonobos up for sale but decided against it.
Prior to Bonobos, Onvural had experience in other areas of the retail space, holding senior-level roles at eBay and serving as L’Oreal’s group brand manager, according to her LinkedIn page.
“At first glance, a move to work in the retirement space may seem surprising,” she wrote. “However, what made Bonobos the most exciting to me was its greater purpose, beyond the clothes. At TIAA, their purpose is their business — empowering teachers to create a better financial future for themselves and their families.”
Bonobos was founded in 2007 by Dunn and Brian Spaly, initially as a direct-to-consumer men’s pants brand. It later expanded its assortment to include shirts and suits, among other products.
