Wet Seal adds to Board to fight activist investor back

The Wet Seal Inc. added three independent members Monday to

its board of directors to fight back pressure from activist hedge fund Clinton Group Inc, which is leading on a buyout campaign to take over the California-based retailer.

"Our three new independent directors all have specific expertise, credibility and networks to help guide the company as we build out our online and mobile platforms," said Chief Executive John Goodman in a statement.

"We are very fortunate to have them joining the board at this crucial juncture," Goodman assured.

The appointment of Deena Varshavskaya, the CEO and founder of social shopping platform Wanelo; Nancy Lublin, the CEO of the young adult social change platform DoSomething.org; and Adam Rothstein, the general partner of Distrupt-ive Technologies Partners; grows Wet Seal's board of directors from seven members to nine.