Circuit City makes top management changes and sets store closures

Circuit City Stores, Inc. (NYSE:CC) today released information about a massive management restructure that it says will help it attain better financial performance as well as meet the increased demands of customers. Translation: some divisions were not performing well at all and a mix-up was needed to get all butts in gear or die trying. Sounds better?

Circuit City CEO and Chairman Philip J. Schoonover said, "Because of the intensified gross margin pressures that we saw in the third quarter within the flat panel television category, we launched efforts to accelerate the timing of planned initiatives to improve sales and gross margin, as well as improve the efficiency of our expense structure."

Schoonover said that "getting our cost structure more inline with today's marketplace" will start soon. The nation's second-largest consumer electronics retailer is expected to have expenses of approximately $30 million related to store and other facility closings, both domestic and international.

The company is also making executive management structure changes to improve execution and accountability, which I guess has completely faltered lately. Schoonover used a tepid and boilerplate type of statement to say that "These leadership role changes will foster improved teamwork and execution while driving accountability across the organization."