Dive Brief:
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Bridget Teeter, global head of the stylist field team at Stitch Fix, is departing the company, Stitch Fix confirmed on Friday.
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David Degan and Ashley Burghardt will lead the U.S. and U.K. styling teams. They will report to Chief Operatons Officer Minesh Shah, according to an internal company email.
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Teeter arrived at the apparel box service in 2020, according to this LinkedIn page.
Dive Insight:
Teeter’s depature continues significant turnover at Stitch Fix in recent months.
The retailer last month announced that chief product officer, Sharon Chiarella, is also leaving after less than a year on the job. Over the summer, a host of stylists left after the company made abrupt changes to their work conditions, prompting a concern from analysts and an apology from Shah.
To the surprise of many observers, Stitch Fix’s founder, Katrina Lake, gave up her post as chief executive last year as well. Bain Consultant Elizabeth Spaulding, who had been tapped to be president of the company in late 2109, is now CEO. Also in 2019 Chief Financial Officer Paul Yee stepped down after two years.
Many of these changes could reflect the retailer’s fundamental shift from its disruptive apparel box offer to a more traditional e-commerce model, dubbed Freestyle. That pivot has been bumpier than executives foresaw. Last month Spaulding said that Freestyle is taking some sales from the subscription “Fix” business, as many “new” Freestyle customers are simply buying off the site rather than paying the styling fees that go with their boxes.
That may have scared off some investors, as the company’s shares have dipped in recent weeks. On Thursday, Stitch Fix announced its board approved a $150 million share buyback program.
“This share repurchase program reflects the confidence we have in our strategy, unique value proposition and the growth potential ahead for Stitch Fix, which we believe is not reflected in the current market valuation,” Spaulding said in a statement.
