By Peter Van Allen
Maternity-wear retailer Destination Maternity Corp. said Wednesday it has named a new president.
Chris Daniel, who has two decades of experience in the women’s apparel business, will report to CEO Ed Krell, effective June 1. He will be responsible for merchandising, design, marketing, visual, sourcing and branding.
Daniel most recently worked for Hot Topic Inc., where he was president of Torrid, a specialty retail division focused on plus-sized women in their teens and 20s. Krell had served as interim president, replacing Emilia Fabricant, who resigned last August after less than three months on the job.
Also Tuesday, Destination Maternity reported second-quarter income of $5.9 million, or 45 cents a share, up from $3.8 million, or 30 cents, a year earlier. A restructuring program instituted in fiscal 2008 contributed to the improved earnings.
Earnings exceeded earlier guidance and sent shares up by 2.69 percent, or 65 cents, in mid-morning trading.
Sales for the quarter totaled $133.8 million, up from $131.1 million a year earlier, reflecting the addition of leased maternity-wear sections in department stores. On a comparable basis, measuring only stores that were open at the same time last year, sales rose 0.3 percent.
Destination Maternity is the world’s largest maternity-wear retailer, with 2,375 retail locations, including 672 stores trading under the names Motherhood Maternity, A Pea in the Pod and Destination Maternity.
