Spiegel Says Eddie Bauer Chief Executive Retiring

Spiegel Inc. announced the retirement of Richard Fersch, president and chief executive of its Eddie Bauer division, effective immediately, and said a search firm has been hired to find a replacement.

Spiegel is primarily focused on bringing someone in from outside the company, spokeswoman Debbie Koopman said. During the transition period, Fersch, who joined Spiegel in 1988 and was named chief executive in 1997, will work with the company to run day-to-day operations, Spiegel said.

Fersch, 52, was credited with expanding Eddie Bauer’s sales to $1.6 billion from $900 million, Spiegel said. Sales were hurt in 1999 and 2000 after the company introduced clothes that looked too casual and too young for its 35-to-55-year-old target consumer group, Spiegel said.

Eddie Bauer accounted for 57% of Spiegel’s sales in 2000.

Shares of Downers Grove, Ill.-based Spiegel fell 27 cents to $4.06 on Nasdaq.

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Bloomberg News