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Pacific Sunwear (NASDAQ: PSUN) has been losing money and ground in the specialty/teen retailing business, so the company has decided to turn to a new CEO, one with quite a bit of experience in the surfing and skating world. The new head man at PSUN will be Gary H. Schoenfeld, the former CEO at Vans. The 46-year-old Schoenfeld replaces Sally Frame Kasaks, who had served as CEO since 2006 and board chairwoman since 2007. According to the company, Kasaks will continue to remain with the company as a director. Schoenfeld will take the helm of the retailer on June 29.
The new CEO wants to make PSUN "once again a favorite place to shop," through expansion of its brand mix, attracting new customers, and promoting the surf-and-skate lifestyle, he told the LA Times . That said, Schoenfeld isn't delusional; he knows that the company "has had declining sales trends and hasn't been profitable for some time, so we've got some work to do." The recession has not been kind to PSUN, so the retailer has joined the parade of retailers undertaking cost-cutting measures.
According to Mitch Kummetz, analyst at Robert W. Baird, Schoenfeld has the experience necessary to lead PSUN in a new direction, "Gary's strength is understanding the action sports market and understanding the teen consumer."
I agree, I like the move quite a bit. In the sneaker community, Vans is one of the more revered names, mainly because of its niche in the surf-and-skate lifestyle. If Schoenfeld can instill some of the leadership and fashion that he used to carve out the aforementioned niche for Vans, then I expect PSUN could launch a bit of a comeback. The problem is, you won't get instant gratification in this current market; you will have to be patient if you want to profit from PSUN.
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