Bonobos Gets a New CEO as Founder Becomes Executive Chair

Bonobos founder and CEO Andy Dunn has named Francine Della Badia to succeed him as he becomes executive chairman of the e-commerce men’s brand. The company says Dunn will serve as a partner to Della Badia, and act as the company’s spokesman.

“After two years of thinking about this transition and five years of getting to know Fran, I am thrilled to introduce her as our next CEO,” said Dunn in a statement. “Her proven leadership capabilities and incredibly strong retail experience make her uniquely qualified for this position. For the past eight years I’ve been serving dual roles as CEO and chairman. As the company scales rapidly, it became increasingly clear that these jobs need dedicated attention. By being focused on chairman and hiring a great CEO with complementary experience, we can lead this remarkable team into the next era.”

Della Badia was most recently the president of North American Retail for Coach, a position she held from July 2013 until February this year. She spent almost 14 years of her career at Coach and has held positions at Victoria’s Secret and J. Crew. She also founded Fashion Camp NYC, a five-day summer camp for teens.

“I feel fortunate to inherit a company with very compelling brands and strong momentum that is poised for continued growth,” Della Badia added in a statement. “Andy is a remarkable entrepreneur and innovator who has successfully re-invented how a clothing brand is created in the digital age. During the past eight years he has established an extremely loyal Bonobos following and developed an incredible team. I feel privileged and excited to lead this industry pioneer into its next phase of growth.”

Dunn founded Bonobos in 2007 as an e-commerce business focused on men’s pants. The company has since expanded into other categories, opened 16 retail stores, wholesaled the collection to retailers like Nordstrom and Belk and launched new brands in women’s (Ayr) and golf (Maide).