Louis Mancini, president and CEO of Brookstone Inc. for the past three years, as well as a member of the company’s board of directors, will be stepping down from these positions effective March 4.
Philip W. Roizin will serve as interim president and CEO and as a director of the company. Roizin has been Brookstone’s EVP, finance and administration, since 1996.
In addition, Jackson Tai has been appointed as chairman of the company’s board of directors, succeeding Ron Sim, who will remain as a director. Sim is founder, chairman and CEO of OSIM International, which acquired Brookstone in 2005.
Mancini “assumed leadership at a critical juncture and successfully implemented numerous operational initiatives that had an immediate impact on the company and its bottom line,” said William Watts, an operating partner of JW Childs Associates and a director of the company.
A search is under way for a permanent CEO, and Roizin is a candidate.
“For more than 12 years, [Roizin] has been intimately involved in virtually every aspect of the company’s business and has been a key driver of the company’s development and growth,” said Sim, in a statement. “He will bring his wealth of experience to help the company meet the challenges presented by the current retail environment.”
Brookstone recently reported that net sales for 14-week period ended January 3 totaled $220.1 million, a 23.7% decrease from 13-week period ended December 29, 2007. Same-store sales for the 13-week period ended December 27, 2008, decreased 25.5% compared to the comparable period the previous year.
