Angela Ahrendts has made her official appearance on Apple’s executive page, right next to CEO Tim Cook. This marks the start of the former Burberry CEO’s reign as Apple’s Senior Vice President of Retail and Online Stores.
MacRumors notes that Ahrendts is taking on a position that has seen quite a bit of turnover in recent years. Ron Johnson left the position in 2011 to join JC Penney. The position was filled by John Browett in 2012, but he was pushed out shortly thereafter. Apple has operated without an official retail leader ever since then.
Ahrendts’ Press Info Page at Apple reads as follows:
Angela Ahrendts is Apple’s senior vice president of retail and online stores, reporting to CEO Tim Cook.
Angela is responsible for the operation and expansion of Apple retail and online stores, which have redefined the shopping experience for hundreds of millions of customers around the world. Apple retail stores set the standard for customer service with innovative features like the Genius Bar, personal setup and one-to-one personal training to help customers get the most out of their Apple products.
Angela joined Apple from Burberry, where she served as CEO and led the company through a period of outstanding global growth. Prior to Burberry, she was executive vice president at Liz Claiborne Inc., and earlier in her career she served as president of Donna Karan International.
Angela holds a Marketing and Merchandising degree from Ball State University in Indiana, where she was awarded an honorary doctorate in 2010. She is also a member of the UK’s Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Council and was named honorary dame commander of the British Empire in April 2014.
Prior to joining Apple Ahrendts served as CEO of the fashion house Burberry, and is credited with bringing Burberry back to profitability, tripling the company’s income.
Ahrendts could breathe some much needed new life into Apple’s retail stores and online presence, which some say has stagnated in recent years.
