Fashion brand Ralph Lauren has announced plans to nominate Angela Ahrendts, Apple's retail head, for a non-executive position on its board of directors.
Ahrendts will be up for election at Ralph Lauren's annual shareholders meeting, currently expected in August. Top-level executives -- including Lauren himself -- are treating her appointment as a done deal, suggesting they expect little if any resistance in voting.
The appointment will leave Ahrendts in her current full-time position at Apple, making her little more than an advisor in her added duties.
Ahrendts is no stranger to the fashion industry, having served as the CEO of Burberry until she joined Apple in 2014. That background is widely believed to be the reason for her hiring, since Apple announced the Apple Watch later that year and embarked on an international revamp of its retail aesthetics with fashion in mind.
That overhaul is still in progress, since the company has over 500 stores worldwide and many U.S. locations are a decade or more old. In some cases Apple has waited until it could move into larger spaces to accommodate growing traffic.
The last dedicated pop-up store for the Watch is set to close on May 13. Under Ahrendts, Apple launched several around the world in a bid to position the product as a fashion accessory.