// Matchesfashion chief executive Ajay Kavan leaves with immediate effect
// Non-executive director Maureen Chiquet will act as exec chair until a CEO replacement is found
// Kavan had been at the helm of the luxury retailer since March 2020
Matchesfashion has announced that its chief executive Ajay Kavan has stepped down from the business with immediate effect.
Non-executive director Maureen Chiquet, who joined the business in 2018, will act as executive chairwoman until a chief executive replacement is found.
Kavan has been at the helm of the luxury retailer since March 2020.
READ MORE: Matchesfashion plummets to £5.9m loss
He joined from Amazon, where he was a vice-president of international special projects between August 2018 and March 2020.
“I believe in the potential of the business and the team is focused behind a clear set of goals that will further accelerate growth in the years ahead,” Kavan said.
Chiquet is a former Gap executive and the former chief executive of Chanel.
The company didn’t provide specific reasons for the departure of Kavan but chairman Tom Hall thanked him for his “significant contributions to Matchesfashion over a challenging year”.
Hall said: “I would like to thank Ajay for his significant contributions over a challenging year, book-ended by the start of Covid lockdown and Brexit.
“Ajay has reinforced the foundations of the business, significantly strengthened the team and embedded a customer-driven culture.”
In the year to January 31 2020, Matchesfashion saw its revenue rise to £430 million from £372 million, but the cost of sales rocketed.
It swung to a net loss of £5.9 million after a profit of £0.8 million a year earlier.
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