14 DAY TRIAL // Apple’s retail and online stores finally have a proper leader. After firing John Browett, Tim Cook can breathe a sigh of relief and unload some of his duties to Angela Ahrendts, who is now officially Apple's senior vice president of retail and online stores.
Mrs. Ahrendts is now officially part of the Apple executive matrix, featuring her own bio on the company’s leadership page as of today.
“Angela Ahrendts is Apple's senior vice president of retail and online stores, reporting to CEO Tim Cook,” reads her bio. “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.”
The company adds, “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.”
Formerly the chief executive officer of Britain’s famous fashion house Burberry, Mrs. Ahrendts has been instrumental in the company’s success.
Apple goes through key moments in her career, saying, “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.”
The new SVP holds a Marketing and Merchandising degree from Ball State University in Indiana and is a member of the UK's Prime Minister's Business Advisory Council. Last month, Ahrendts was named honorary dame commander of the British Empire.
There are multiple important reasons behind Apple’s decision to basically poach Ahrendts from Burberry. One of those is that the Mac maker hasn’t had any proper retail leadership (or growth, for that matter) since Ron Johnson left in 2011.
The company has tried filling the position a couple of times using experienced retail chiefs. The last such hire was John Browett, and the move proved to be an utter disaster. The company’s retail organization could not afford another big blow, and with the expensive iWatch on the way, Apple needed someone with a great deal of experience in both retail and the ability to pitch luxury / fashion items to end users.
Another theory is that Ahrendts will succeed Tim Cook as CEO of Apple. The former Burberry boss is said to share a lot of common values with Cook and Apple as a company, making her a good candidate in the CEO succession plan.