C&A CEO Gina Boer leaves

Dutch fashion retailer C&A has announced the departure of its leader Gina Boer. She joined C&A Europe as CEO in 2021. Boer has not been immediately replaced. Edward Brenninkmeijer, a member of the family who owns the Dutch group, has taken over as interim CEO, ahead of the appointment of a new top executive. Brenninkmeijer had served as interim CEO before Boer joined the group.

Boer, who previously worked at Ikea for more than 20 years, is leaving C&A to “focus on new non-executive opportunities,” as the group said in a press release.

Allan Leighton, chairman of C&A’s supervisory board, expressed his gratitude for “the energy, vision and 25-year business expertise that Gina Boer contributed as she led the transformation of C&A Europe. Any transformation on this scale is a challenge, but implementing it after the pandemic and at a time of extraordinary change for the fashion retail business deserves special credit,” he said.

C&A operates more than 1,300 stores in 17 European countries, and has 27,000 employees. At the end of 2021, the group embarked on a modernisation effort designed to streamline and upgrade its organisation. It has notably undertaken to renovate 800 stores, while about 100 new openings are planned within the next three years.

In France, C&A’s second-largest market after Germany, the group operates nearly 160 stores, including several corners in mass-market grocery retailers. C&A recently opened its first store in France in 11 years, at 1,000 square-metre premises in Plaisir, in the Yvelines region. In 2023, the group notably closed two Parisian flagships, on boulevard Haussmann and rue de Rivoli.