Destination Maternity appoints Melissa Payner-Gregor interim CEO

Destination Maternity has announced the appointment of Melissa Payner-Gregor, an independent director of the company, as interim Chief Executive Officer, effective immediately. The company said, Payner-Gregor is succeeding Allen Weinstein, who had been serving in the role since September 2017, since he has decided to retire from the board for personal reasons.

Commenting on the announcement, Barry Erdos, Chairman of the company’s board, said in a media release: "We are grateful to Allen for his service on our board for the last seven plus years as well as his recent service as interim CEO and the progress that has been made. We are also appreciative of Melissa's willingness to lead the company during this period of transition, and we are confident that she and our senior management team will continue our forward progress, as we to look for the right chief executive to lead Destination Maternity's next phase of growth."

Destination Maternity establishes “Office of the CEO”

The company also announced the establishment of an "Office of the CEO" which will be comprised of Payner-Gregor and Ronald J. Masciantonio, the company's Executive Vice President & Chief Administrative Officer, David Stern, Executive Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, and Shelley Liebsch, Senior Vice President of Merchandising and Design, who will be reporting into Payner-Gregor. The company also said that it is working with Kirk Palmer Associates in the ongoing search for a new permanent chief executive officer.

Interim CEO Melissa Payner-Gregor has served as a director of the Destination Maternity board since August 2009. She is currently working as a consultant for several retail/e-commerce companies. She served as an advisor to Bluefly Inc. in 2015, having previously served as the company's chief executive officer from 2004 to 2012. In 2003 she was Bluefly's President. Prior to joining Bluefly, Payner-Gregor held senior management positions with prominent retailers and consumer products companies, including chief executive officer and president of Spiegel Catalog and president of Chico's FAS.

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