PARIS – Printemps Group has named Antony Rodrigues as administrative and financial director, effective June 1, filling a key executive post as the search for its new chief executive officer continues amid a round of job cuts.
Rodrigues, who joined the retailer in 2019 as head of controlling, succeeds Eric Lovisolo, who is retiring after holding the position since 2008. Printemps has been without a CEO since Jean-Marc Bellaiche stepped down last September, less than six months after opening a splashy outpost in New York City.
A graduate of France’s Essec business school, Rodrigues began his career at Sephora in 2007 before moving in 2011 to menswear brand Celio, where he was promoted to head of controlling in 2017.
“Amid a rapidly evolving retail sector requiring strong performance and agility, we have every confidence in Antony’s ability to support Printemps Group in its next steps. His appointment is designed to help Printemps Group keep pace with market evolutions, backed by strong internal talent,” the Printemps supervisory board said in a statement.
Printemps was acquired in 2013 by Divine Investments SA, a Luxembourg-based investment fund backed by Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, the former emir of Qatar.
Citing “major upheaval in the apparel sector,” the French department store operator said in April that it plans to close its location in Rennes, and eliminate 229 positions as part of a reorganization.
During his five-year tenure, Bellaiche spearheaded a broad rejuvenation that included a rebrand, a pivot toward local customers and a digital transformation of the retailer, which launched its e-commerce site in March 2020 just as the country went into lockdown. But his most visible legacy is the opening of the One Wall Street location, with its landmarked Art Deco Red Room.
