Retail veteran Iain Nairn will be retiring this month as President and CEO of The Bay according to a press release issued on Wednesday. Sophia Hwang-Judiesch, who in September was appointed President of Hudson’s Bay stores, will expand her role to also lead online division The Bay.
As part of the move, Hwang-Judiesch will head-up efforts to improve both the digital and in-store performance of Hudson’s Bay as a whole — in 2021 the Hudson’s Bay Company spun off its online division into The Bay while maintaining a separate division for physical Hudson’s Bay department stores. The Bay division is responsible for shared functions including brand direction, marketing, buying, planning and technology for both businesses.
Nairn was appointed president of Hudson Bay’s before the separation of the physical and online businesses in January 2020. He’s had a 46-year career in the industry, having led such retailers as David Jones in Australia in the past. Since joining The Bay, he oversaw a digital transformation of the business including the launch of Marketplace, which brought more than 900 new sellers to TheBay.com.
“It has been an honour leading The Bay and I am incredibly grateful to the associates that are the engine of The Bay organization. We have achieved some monumental wins together and I know there are many great things yet to come for this iconic retailer,” Nairn said in a statement.
Richard Baker, Governor and Executive Chairman of HBC, said “We thank Iain for his tremendous contributions to The Bay as we continue to deliver exciting and relevant experiences for the Canadian customer. As Sophia takes the reins, I’m confident her strategic and operational leadership will help drive performance, grow market share and elevate the customer journey even further.”
Hwang-Judiesch was appointed President of Hudson’s Bay in September of 2022 to lead the Hudson’s Bay store organization, including the execution of the company’s in-store digital selling transformation, customer experience and store optimization strategy. Her September appointment followed the retirement of retail veteran Wayne Drummond. Prior to joining Hudson’s Bay, she was a leader at US-based beauty retailer Ulta Beauty.
This year is expected to be a big one for Hudson’s Bay as parent company the Hudson’s Bay Company strategizes reviving the Zellers brand with shop-in-stores within existing Hudson’s Bay stores. We’ll be reporting more on the company this year as some big announcements are expected for its multiple banners.
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