AppleInsider StaffBenjamin Fay, former senior director of retail real estate, design and development at Apple, will take on the similarly-named role of executive vice president, real estate, store design and development at jcpenney, according to a company statement.
Fay will answer to former Apple Store chief and current J.C. Penney Company, Inc. CEO Ron Johnson and will oversee the retail strategy of the chain's more than 1,100 locations in the U.S. and Puereto Rico. The new hire will reportedly help to create an entirely new "interface for retail."
"Ben is an incredibly creative professional with extraordinary leadership skills. Having worked with him over the last 12 years, I am delighted to see Ben step into this new role at jcp," Johnson said. "His design influence has made the Apple stores highly regarded retail destinations around the world, and I am excited to have Ben place his own mark on jcp as we re-imagine the jcpenney store of the future."
Along with the general responsibilities of remodeling and maintenance of existing jcpenney locations, Fay will be in charge of the "Shops" initiative which is akin to a branded store-within-a-store. An example would be the Martha Stewart shops that are planned to roll out in jcpenney stores next year.
Prior to his tenure at Apple, Fay worked with architecture planning and consulting firm Gensler on the computer giant's worldwide chain of retail outlets.
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20 Comments
Jobs would've opened up a giant bag of hurt on Ron Johnson by now. He would've viewed this as poaching.
I, for one, find this very disturbing. The new guy has NO sense of style; his stores in the UK are ugly and seemingly devoid of any aesthetic awareness. His haircut alone tells you all you need to know about his artistic sensibility.
It is highly likely that the design person who left did not leave because there was a 'new offer' from Penneys. More likely, the offer had been made in the past. The difference now is that he now has to work underneath this man who had never demonstrated any special abilities or vision, and he couldn't stand it. It is bad management at Apple that is making him leave, not the 'appeal' of Penneys.
As a stockholder, I find this very disturbing.
I, for one, find this very disturbing. The new guy has NO sense of style; his stores in the UK are ugly and seemingly devoid of any aesthetic awareness. His haircut alone tells you all you need to know about his artistic sensibility.
It is highly likely that the design person who left did not leave because there was a 'new offer' from Penneys. More likely, the offer had been made in the past. The difference now is that he now has to work underneath this man who had never demonstrated any special abilities or vision, and he couldn't stand it. It is bad management at Apple that is making him leave, not the 'appeal' of Penneys.
As a stockholder, I find this very disturbing.
Don't get ahead of yourself. I am no fan of Browett, but neither you nor I actually know why Fay has left. It's one thing to wonder about a possibility, another to consider it a fact.
I, for one, find this very disturbing. The new guy has NO sense of style; his stores in the UK are ugly and seemingly devoid of any aesthetic awareness. His haircut alone tells you all you need to know about his artistic sensibility.
It is highly likely that the design person who left did not leave because there was a 'new offer' from Penneys. More likely, the offer had been made in the past. The difference now is that he now has to work underneath this man who had never demonstrated any special abilities or vision, and he couldn't stand it. It is bad management at Apple that is making him leave, not the 'appeal' of Penneys.
As a stockholder, I find this very disturbing.
He may just be unhappy because he was passed over for the promotion to Ron Johnson spot.
So Johnson is now poaching Apple's best and brightest?
Traitors! Both of them!