Madewell names Adrienne Lazarus as president

Denim and brand Madewell, part of the J.Crew Group, has named industry veteran Adrienne Lazarus as its new president as part of its strategy to accelerate growth.

In a statement, Madewell said that Lazarus, a proven industry leader with more than 30 years of expertise building and scaling speciality retail and direct-to-consumer companies, would join the company in September.

Lazarus will oversee all aspects of Madewell’s business, and all brand functions will report to her. She will report to Libby Wadle, chief executive officer of J.Crew Group, which operates J. Crew, J. Crew Factory Outlets, Crewcuts and Madewell.

Commenting on the appointment, Wadle said: “Adrienne’s exceptional leadership skills, creativity, and passion for building relevant, customer-centric and purpose-driven brands will be a great asset to our team as Madewell continues to scale.

“Her strategic approach, entrepreneurial spirit, and proven track record makes her the ideal leader to join Madewell as we position the brand for the future. We welcome Adrienne to the Madewell team and look forward to her many contributions.”

J.Crew Group strengthens its leadership team and appoints Adrienne Lazarus as president of Madewell

Throughout her career, Lazarus has led high-growth, well-established brands in the luxury and contemporary space, including vertical, multi-brand and direct-to-consumer retail. Most recently, she has served as co-chief executive of CUUP, a direct-to-consumer intimates brand, and a senior advisor at McKinsey & Company, leveraging her expertise in the retail, wholesale, and digital sectors to drive growth and business transformation for the firm’s retail and apparel clients.

Previously, she served as the chief executive of Bandier and Frye, as well as president of Intermix, and was president of the Ann Taylor brand, where she spearheaded a large-scale turnaround and achieved unprecedented profitability for the company.

On her new role, Lazarus added: “Madewell is an iconic brand with well positioned product, deep customer loyalty and unique focus on creating community. I’m energized by the clear potential for growth and honoured to join Libby and the highly talented Madewell team in unlocking value and ushering the brand into its next era.”