Matt Hyde, CEO of boating products and accessories retailer West Marine Products has resigned, effective immediately.
A spokeswoman for West Marine, No. 350 in the Internet Retailer 2017 Top 500, declined to provide further details about Hyde’s departure. The spokeswoman told Internet Retailer on Tuesday afternoon that chief financial officer Jeff Lasher has taken over as interim CEO.
Hyde became CEO in June 2012, joining the company from outdoor gear and apparel retailer REI (No. 74). He’s an e-commerce veteran who was responsible for launching REI’s website more than two decades ago.
West Marine grew its online sales to an Internet Retailer-estimated $75.4 million in 2016, up 9.4% from $68.9 million in 2015 and up 88.5% from $40 million in 2012 when Hyde took over the top spot. The retailer was acquired by Monomoy Capital Partners for $338 million in cash in July.
In other e-commerce personnel news:
- Wal-Mart Stores Inc. (No. 3) hired Scott Doughman as president of its Hayneedle brand, replacing Jon Barker, and Anthony Soohoo as its first-ever general manager of Walmart.com, Hayneedle, and Jet.com’s U.S. home products group. Doughman was most recently vice president of global partnerships at search engine Yahoo. Soohoo, meanwhile, was the co-founder and CEO of online-only home furnishings retailer Dot and Bo, which shut down last year after three years of operation.
- Apparel retailer rue21 (No. 408), which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in May, has hired Michael Appel as its interim CEO. Appel becomes the third person to hold the role of interim CEO at rue21 this year. Appel takes over for Melanie Cox, who took the role in April. Cox had replaced Keith McDonough, who was promoted to interim CEO from chief financial officer in October 2016. McDonough took over after CEO Bob Fisch left the position after 15 years at the helm of the retailer.