C&A puts three women in charge of Europe

Fashion chain C&A has appointed two women to the top of its European branch: Giny Boer leaves Ikea to replace Edward Brenninkmeijer as CEO, while Birgit Kretschmer parts way with Adidas to become CFO.

Musical chairs

Brenninkmeijer leaves his seat as CEO Europe and overall CEO for a position in the company’s board of directors, making way for Ikea’s general manager for Southern and Eastern Europe, Giny Boer. The Dutch national will start preparing for her new role on 15 September and accedes to her new position on 1 January.

Kretschmer, on the other hand, takes the place of CFO Ralf Senden, who leaves the fashion retailer altogether. She currently is responsible for Adidas’ corporate finances, and will remain in the same sector as C&A’s new CFO. They quickly follow another female appointment: former Akzo Nobel CFO Maëlys Castella has been appointed non-executive director last month.

C&A says it has survived the Covid-19 pandemic rather well (all things considered), but it has been struggling for a while, closing thirty French stores just last year. The company will now shift more towards omnichannel, Brenninkmeijer concluded.