Metropark appoints Cynthia T. Harriss Chief Executive Officer
Expansion of Management Team for Lifestyle Specialty Store Chain Blending Fashion, Music and Art for Trendsetters
Tweet-- Metropark, a Los Angeles-based apparel specialty store chain for trendsetting young adults, announced today that it has named Cynthia T. Harriss as Chief Executive Officer and a member of its Board of Directors.
Ms. Harriss, a 37 year retail veteran, has a proven track record as an exceptional operator and leader. Most recently, Ms. Harriss served as President of Gap Brand, where she led the North America business, including Gap, GapKids, babyGap, GapMaternity and GapBody. Overseeing the brand's 1,335 North American stores and 45,000 employees, she led the development of the Gap brand.
Ms. Harriss has also served as President, Disneyland Resorts, responsible for the management and long term growth of the division, including Disneyland and Disney's California Adventure theme parks. Prior experience at Disney includes Senior Vice President, The Disney Stores, where she helped lead the organization's growth from 140 to 460 North American stores.
"We are very excited to announce that Cynthia T. Harriss, an accomplished retail leader, will be joining Metropark as CEO and Board Member," stated Orv Madden, Chairman and Founder of Metropark. "With our recent rapid growth to 69 stores and an emerging e-commerce business, we are investing in management and infrastructure for future expansion as we build our brand. During 2011, we expect to open up to 10 new stores and re-launch our website and e-commerce site with enhanced features and capabilities. Our most senior merchant and manager, Renee Bell, has been appointed to a newly created position of President and Chief Merchandising Officer, where she will be responsible for Metropark's merchandising, inventory planning, marketing and e-commerce strategies."
Madden added, "We're confident that the investment we have made in our senior management leadership team will allow us to accelerate future growth. Cynthia has a long and successful history of retail brand building and management development. We look forward to her joining us."
Notes to Editor
About MetroPark
Metropark is a highly differentiated mall apparel specialty retailer that combines the converging core lifestyle elements of fashion, music and art; appealing to 20-35 year old tastemaker adults. The store offers a high-energy shopping experience that is part store, part club, and features a carefully edited assortment from fashion designers. Customers enjoy upbeat music videos viewable on large plasma screens throughout the store as well as live DJ performances on weekends, art installations and fashion shows. In addition to its online store at www.metroparkusa.com, Metropark operates stores in 69 premier shopping destinations. For more information, visit the company's website at www.metroparkusa.com.
Media Contact: Laura Bojanowski
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