Karen Katz, who has served as Neiman Marcus Group’s president and CEO since 2010, will retire from those positions on Feb. 12, the company announced in an SEC filing.
Katz, a 30-year Neiman veteran who began her career as an assistant store manager, will remain a member of the company’s board of directors.
She will be replaced as CEO by Geoffroy van Raemdonck (pictured).
Van Raemdonck, 45, most recently served for three years as group president for Europe, Middle East, and Africa, and global travel retail at Ralph Lauren. He was also CEO of St. John Knits International. With an MBA from the University of Chicago, he began his career as a consultant with Boston Consulting.
In 2015, Neiman applied for an IPO, but ultimately withdrew it two years later. The company is owned by Ares Management and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, which bought it for $6 billion in 2013.
An attempt to sell itself last year proved equally unsuccessful.
Katz lately had been promoting a digital-first strategy. Currently, online represents 30 percent of the company’s revenues.
“It has been a unique privilege serving as CEO, and I am proud of the substantial progress and success our team has achieved,” Katz said in a statement. “Geoffroy has an impressive track record of success at luxury brands, and he is the right person to lead the company through this next phase of growth.”
(Image courtesy of Neiman Marcus)
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