Bed Bath & Beyond store. Photo: marekuliasz/Shutterstock.comFormer Amazon, J. Crew Lawyer Arlene Hong Joins Bed Bath & Beyond as Chief Legal Officer
Hong, who starts her new job on May 18, succeeds former CLO Allan Rauch. He was one of six senior executives ousted from Bed Bath & Beyond in December 2019.
May 01, 2020 at 01:04 PM
4 minute read
The original version of this story was published on Corporate Counsel
As Bed Bath & Beyond continues to rebuild its executive leadership team, the struggling retailer has named Arlene Hong as chief legal officer.
Hong, a former lawyer for Amazon.com Inc. and J. Crew Group Inc., joins Bed Bath & Beyond along with a new chief financial officer, chief digital officer and chief stores officer. The Union, New Jersey-based company announced the appointments Thursday.
"This is an exciting time to join such an iconic brand and I look forward to joining a world class team that will come together to help ensure Bed Bath & Beyond continues to deepen the important role it plays in customers' lives," Hong said in a statement.
She added, "I'm also particularly proud to join an executive team that is committed to bringing customers critical products they need to feel at home as we all navigate these unprecedented times."
Hong, who was not immediately available for an interview, starts her new job May 18. She succeeds former CLO Allan Rauch, who was one of six senior executives ousted from Bed Bath & Beyond in December 2019. Michael Callahan stepped up from corporate counsel to serve as interim CLO following Rauch's departure.
Hong joins Bed Bath & Beyond during a tumultuous time for the company, which has closed 42 stores in the past year and opened nine new stores, according to its latest annual report. The company's planned sale of its PeronalizationMall.com online retail business to 1-800-Flowers.com also failed to close Thursday.
The coronavirus pandemic prompted Bed Bath & Beyond to temporarily close its stores, further exacerbating the company's financial woes. Its gross profit for fiscal 2019 was $3.54 billion, down nearly 16% from the prior fiscal year. And its net sales for 2019 dropped by more than $870 million compared with 2018.
Hong most recently served as chief legal officer and corporate secretary for Fullbeauty Brands, a plus-size fashion, accessories and home furnishings retailer headquartered in New York.
Before she joined Fullbeauty in 2018, Hong spent more than four years at Amazon, first as general counsel of Quidsi, the largest e-commerce retailer subsidiary of the tech giant. In 2017, she was elevated to the role of senior corporate counsel for Amazon North America's apparel and shoe business.
Earlier in her career, Hong was general counsel for J. Crew and spearheaded the New York-based clothier's initial public offering in 2006, according to her LinkedIn profile. Between her stints at J. Crew and Amazon, Hong was the first-ever top lawyer for e-commerce retailer Ideeli Inc.
Her new boss, Bed Bath & Beyond president and CEO Mark Tritton, described Hong in a statement as a "world class legal expert with deep experience in e-commerce."
He added, "She brings a wealth of experience from some of the leading retailers in the world and we look forward to having her insight and experience guide our plans to become an omni-always retailer, rebuilding our authority in the home."
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