Abercrombie & Fitch Co. Elects Two Members to its Board of Directors
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) has appointed two new independent board members, Susie Coulter and James A. Goldman, effective May 20, 2020. This change follows the departure of James Bachmann, who served nearly 17 years on the board. Coulter, with experience at Victoria's Secret and Polo Ralph Lauren, and Goldman, former CEO of Godiva Chocolatier and advisor at Eurazeo, are expected to bring valuable insights to the board. The board now consists of 12 directors with 92% independence, enhancing its governance structure.
- Appointment of experienced board members enhances strategic direction.
- Coulter and Goldman bring extensive leadership experience in consumer retail.
- Board composition now boasts 92% independent directors, improving governance.
- Departure of a long-serving board member could impact continuity.
NEW ALBANY, Ohio, May 21, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) today announced the election of two new independent board members, Susie Coulter and James A. Goldman, effective May 20, 2020. Additionally, James Bachmann’s term on the Board of Directors ended immediately prior to the Company’s Annual Meeting after serving on the Board for nearly 17 years.
“Susie and Jim both bring extensive consumer retail, global business and executive leadership experience, that will complement and enhance our existing team. We are pleased to welcome Jim and Susie to A&F and believe that their guidance and perspectives will help to continue to drive the Company and its brands forward,” said Terry Burman, Abercrombie & Fitch Co.’s Non-Executive Chairman of the Board. “I’d also like to thank Jim Bachmann for his many years of dedicated service to A&F. We greatly appreciate his numerous contributions to the Company over the years.”
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. regularly evaluates the composition of its Board to ensure that its directors possess the skills, experience and perspectives needed to guide the Company and help it deliver value to all stakeholders. With these changes, the Company's Board will expand to 12 directors, five of whom are female. Independent directors now comprise
Susie Coulter, 54, is currently the Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Bronty Beauty LLC, a beauty company specializing in all-natural skin care products. She has previously held senior executive roles with global retailers, as the President of Victoria’s Secret Beauty and as the President of Polo Ralph Lauren Retail Stores.
James (Jim) A. Goldman, 61, is currently a Senior Advisor at Eurazeo SE, a global investment firm. Prior to this, he was the Chief Executive Officer and a member of the Board of Directors at Godiva Chocolatier, Inc., and President of the Food & Beverage Division at Campbell Soup Company. Additionally, Mr. Goldman serves as a director at Domino’s Pizza, Inc., where he chairs the Nominating and Corporate Governance Committee and is a member of the Audit Committee.
Safe Harbor Statement Under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995
A&F cautions that any forward-looking statements (as such term is defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) contained in this Press Release or made by management or spokespeople of A&F involve risks and uncertainties and are subject to change based on various important factors, many of which may be beyond the company’s control. Words such as “estimate,” “project,” “plan,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “intend,” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements. Except as may be required by applicable law, we undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements. The following factors, in addition to those disclosed in “ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS” of A&F’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended February 1, 2020, in some cases have affected, and in the future could affect, the company’s financial performance and could cause actual results for fiscal 2020 and beyond to differ materially from those expressed or implied in any of the forward- looking statements included in this Press Release or otherwise made by management: changes in global economic and financial conditions, and the resulting impact on consumer confidence and consumer spending, as well as other changes in consumer discretionary spending habits could have a material adverse impact on our business; failure to engage our customers, anticipate customer demand and changing fashion trends, and manage our inventory commensurately could have a material adverse impact on our business; our failure to operate in a highly competitive and constantly evolving industry could have a material adverse impact on our business; fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates could have a material adverse impact on our business; our ability to attract customers to our stores depends, in part, on the success of the shopping malls or area attractions that our stores are located in or around; the impact of war, acts of terrorism, mass casualty events or civil unrest could have a material adverse impact on our business; the impact of extreme weather, infectious disease outbreaks, including COVID-19, and other unexpected events could result in an interruption to our business, as well as to the operations of our third-party partners, and have a material adverse impact on our business; failure to successfully develop an omnichannel shopping experience, a significant component of our growth strategy, or failure to successfully invest in customer, digital and omnichannel initiatives could have a material adverse impact on our business; our failure to optimize our global store network could have a material adverse impact on our business; our failure to execute our international growth strategy successfully and inability to conduct business in international markets as a result of legal, tax, regulatory, political and economic risks could have a material adverse impact on our business; failure to protect our reputation could have a material adverse impact on our business; if our information technology systems are disrupted or cease to operate effectively it could have a material adverse impact on our business; we may be exposed to risks and costs associated with cyber-attacks, data protection, credit card fraud and identity theft that could have a material adverse impact on our business; our reliance on our distribution centers makes us susceptible to disruptions or adverse conditions affecting our supply chain; changes in the cost, availability and quality of raw materials, labor, transportation, and trade relations could have a material adverse impact on our business; we depend upon independent third parties for the manufacture and delivery of all our merchandise, and a disruption of the manufacture or delivery of our merchandise could have a material adverse impact on our business; we rely on the experience and skills of our executive officers and associates, and the failure to attract or retain this talent, or effectively manage succession could have a material adverse impact on our business; fluctuations in our tax obligations and effective tax rate may result in volatility in our results of operations could have a material adverse impact on our business; our litigation exposure, or any securities litigation and shareholder activism, could have a material adverse impact on our business; failure to adequately protect our trademarks could have a negative impact on our brand image and limit our ability to penetrate new markets which could have a material adverse impact on our business; changes in the regulatory or compliance landscape could have a material adverse impact on our business; and our credit facilities include restrictive covenants that limit our flexibility in operating our business and our inability to obtain credit on reasonable terms in the future could have an adverse impact on our business.
About Abercrombie & Fitch Co.
Abercrombie & Fitch Co. (NYSE: ANF) is a leading, global specialty retailer of apparel and accessories for Men, Women and Kids through three renowned brands. For more than 125 years, the iconic Abercrombie & Fitch brand has outfitted innovators, explorers and entrepreneurs. Today, the brand reflects the updated attitude of the modern consumer, while remaining true to its heritage of creating expertly crafted products with an effortless, American style. The Hollister brand epitomizes the liberating and carefree spirit of the endless California summer for the teen market. abercrombie kids creates smart, playful apparel for children ages 5-14, celebrating the wide-eyed wonder of childhood.
The brands share a commitment to offering products of enduring quality and exceptional comfort that allow consumers around the world to express their own individuality and style. The company operates more than 850 stores under these brands across North America, Europe, Asia and the Middle East, as well as the e-commerce sites www.abercrombie.com and www.hollisterco.com.
| Investor Contact: | Media Contact: |
| Pam Quintiliano | Mackenzie Gusweiler |
| Abercrombie & Fitch Co. | Abercrombie & Fitch Co. |
| (614) 283-6751 | (614) 283-6192 |
| Investor_Relations@anfcorp.com | Public_Relations@anfcorp.com |
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