Capri chairman to become Michael Kors CEO, among other leadership shifts

Luxury group Capri Holdings Limited has administered a series of shifts to the leadership team of its brand, Michael Kors. The most notable change is that its own chairman and chief executive officer, John Idol, is to assume the role of chief executive for the premium brand, a position he will officially take up from December 2, 2024.

Idol will succeed Cedric Wilmotte, who is stepping down from the helm role just over one year on from his initial appointment. The reason for his departure was cited to be “part of [Michael Kors’] reorganisation plans and expense reduction initiatives”.

Effective the same date, Michael Kors veteran Philippa Newman, meanwhile, will be promoted to chief product officer, having most recently served as the brand’s president of accessories and footwear.

In this new role, Newman, who has been with the Michael Kors brand for 14 years, will report to Idol while overseeing merchandising, production, licensing and design across all product categories alongside chief creative officer, Michael Kors himself.

New leadership reaffirms commitment to turnaround plans

On her promotion, Newman said she was “excited” to continue working with Kors and Idol on achieving strategic objectives at the company, which she stated had “strong brand equity and tremendous potential”.

“I am confident that by consolidating design, merchandising, production and licensing under a unified team, we can more effectively execute our strategies, including delivering more targeted product to different consumer cohorts, in order to return Micheal Kors to growth,” Newman added.

It is exactly this that is at the forefront of Idol’s mission for Michael Kors, which posted a 16 percent decline in reported revenue for the second quarter of the fiscal year.

Concerns particularly rose following the termination of the proposed merger of Capri and its competitor, Tapestry, which was ultimately blocked by a US watchdog, despite the duo arguing that competition and a lack of demand in the premium segment was resulting in waning results for the companies under their wings.

Now, however, Idol is reaffirming Capri’s efforts to return brands like Michael Kors to growth, noting again that the group was implementing strategic initiatives to stabilise revenues and energise both new and loyal consumers.

On Newman’s promotion, Idol added: “Philippa is a dynamic leader with an exceptional breadth of experience developing compelling product for our consumers. I am confident that in her new role as chief product officer for Michael Kors she will successfully lead the execution of our product transformation strategy and drive growth for Michael Kors across all channels.”