GameStop initiates search for new CEO -sources

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12/04/2021 19:24

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    By Svea Herbst-Bayliss
    April 12 (Reuters) - GameStop Corp  GME.N  is looking for a
new chief executive to replace George Sherman as it pivots from
being a brick-and-mortar video game retailer to an e-commerce
firm, three people familiar with the matter said on Monday.
    It would be the biggest shakeup at GameStop since Ryan
Cohen, the co-founder and former chief executive of online pet
food company Chewy Inc, joined its board in January. Its stock
is up almost 4,000% from a year ago, after it became the poster
child of retail traders betting on so-called "meme" stocks.
    GameStop's board is working with an executive headhunter on
the CEO search, the sources said, requesting anonymity because
the matter is confidential.
    Several GameStop board directors are involved in the search
and have spoken with potential candidates from the gaming
industry, as well as the e-commerce and technology sectors, the
sources said.
    A GameStop spokesman declined to comment. 
    GameStop shares were trading down 12% at $138.75 in
afternoon trading on Monday, giving the company a market value
of about $10 billion.
    The CEO replacement is the latest in a string of changes
that Cohen has pursued since joining GameStop. Former Chief
Financial Officer Jim Bell and Chief Customer Officer Frank
Hamlin are among the senior executives who have left the company
in recent weeks.
    George Sherman, who has been CEO since April 2019, has been
credited internally with slashing costs and steering GameStop
through the COVID-19 pandemic that led many retailers to go out
of business.
    But Cohen and other GameStop board members view Sherman's 25
years of experience with primarily brick-and-mortar retailers,
such as Advance Auto Parts Inc and Home Depot Inc., as less
relevant to the digital transformation they have embarked on as
a technology company.
    Cohen, who last week was named GameStop's board chairman, is
seeking to make the company the online destination of choice for
video game fans, just as Chewy won over pet lovers. 
    He pushed for a number of hires at GameStop, including
Elliott Wilke as chief growth officer, Jenna Owens as chief
operating officer and Matt Francis as chief technology officer.
All three previously worked at Amazon.com Inc  AMZN.O .
    Cohen also brought on people from Chewy, including Andrea
Wolfe as vice president of brand development, Neda Pacifico as
senior vice president of e-commerce and Kelli Durkin as senior
vice president of customer care.    

 (Reporting by Svea Herbst-Bayliss; Editing by Dan Grebler)
 ((svea.herbst@thomsonreuters.com; +617 856 4331; Reuters
Messaging: svea.herbst.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))