Granoff to Claiborne in Direct-to-Consumer Post

NEW YORK – Jill Granoff has joined Liz Claiborne Inc. as group president of direct-to-consumer with responsibility for the company’s specialty retail and outlet stores and its U.S. e-commerce Web sites.

Her post is new, and her addition to the company marks the first time that all retail operations have been centralized within the corporate structure.

Granoff was president and chief operating officer of Victoria’s Secret Beauty, a unit of Limited Brands, and earlier senior vice president of strategic planning, finance and information systems at Estée Lauder.

She will report to Trudy Sullivan, president of the firm. “Direct-to-consumer is a significant growth engine for Liz Claiborne Inc., accounting for 25 percent of our total revenues in 2005,” said Sullivan in a statement. “Our goal is to drive this number to 29% in 2006. We are highly committed to this channel and adding someone with Jill’s expertise is exactly what we need to accelerate the momentum we are building. She is a first-rate strategist with an unparalleled understanding of the direct-to-consumer arena.”

Liz Claiborne’s brands include Enyce, Juicy Couture, Laundry by Shelli Segal and Lucky Brand Jeans. Additionally, it holds licenses for DKNY Jeans and DKNY Active. Its 2005 sales were just under $4.9 billion.