Apple Taps Fashion Executive to Head Its Stores — And She Was Worth the Wait

Apple’s exhaustive search for a retail chief finally came to a close with the hiring of Burberry CEO Angela Ahrendts. Apple went nearly a year without a vice president in charge of retail, but the wait was worth it: Ahrendts has the stylistic smarts and global reach Apple needs to expand its shopping empire.

Ahrendts will be in charge of all of Apple’s retail efforts, online and off. “I have always admired the innovation and impact Apple products and services have on people’s lives and hope in some small way I can help contribute to the company’s continued success and leadership in changing the world,” she said today in a statement.

In an internal memo, meanwhile, CEO Tim Cook said that he had Ahrendts pegged for the role since they first met in January.

Her appointment may finally close a gaping hole in Apple’s executive team. Last October, Apple announced a major shakeup that included the ouster of then retail head John Browett, who had made a number of ill-received staffing decisions. Browett left during the same putsch that sent iOS vice president Scott Forstall packing. But while Forstall’s responsibilities were redistributed among executives Craig Federighi, Jony Ive, and Eddy Cue, the role of retail head has sat vacant since Browett’s departure.

To go so long without a leader for one of the most important aspects of Apple’s business may seem risky. But the well-established template appears to have allowed Apple stores to coast successfully while Cook took his time luring Ahrendts into the Cupertino fold.

For her part, Ahrendts’ global retail and fashion experience should bode well for a company that’s trying to extend both its reach and its brand. Apple has been trying to deepen its presence in China, a huge and ever-increasingly important global market. During her seven years in charge of Burberry, Ahrendts managed to significantly expand Burberry’s presence in China and other emerging markets, resulting in a more than threefold increase in the fashion brand’s market value ($3.35 billion to $11.18 billion).

As for Ahrendts’ fashion chops, those won’t go to waste at Apple either either. The company is widely rumored to be working on some sort of wearable device — often referred to as the “iWatch” — and Ahrendt is Apple’s second major hire from the fashion industry following Yves Saint Laurent’s Paule Deneve, who was hired to work on “special projects.” Apple has also hired two key folks involved with the development of the Nike FuelBand, designer Ben Shaffer and advisor Jay Blahnik. If the Cupertino mothership is looking for someone to successfully expand the company’s retail savvy as it enters the luxury fashion space — especially in the many parts of the world with better fashion sense than Silicon Valley — you probably couldn’t do much better than Ahrendt.

Source: http://feeds.wired.com/c/35185/f/661370/s/327fcd60/sc/5/l/0L0Swired0N0Cbusiness0C20A130C10A0Capple0Ehires0Eburberry0Eceo0C/story01.htm
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