Wet Seal Appoints New Chairman, 3 Directors

Wet Seal Inc., struggling to boost sales and bring back its teen girl customer base, has appointed a new chairman and three new independent directors to its board.

The ailing Foothill Ranch-based retailer said Tuesday after the markets closed that Irving Teitelbaum, 65, chairman of the firm for 20 years, would retire. The company’s chief executive, Peter D. Whitford, 49, will take on the additional role of chairman.

In addition, two board members resigned and three new ones were appointed. One of the new directors is Anne Kallin Zehren, former publisher of Teen People magazine, who has been serving as a consultant to the firm since May. Some investors had been pushing the retailer to name a woman to its all-male board.

“Some had questioned why, when you are in a fashion business focused on teen girls, there was not a woman on this board,” said Adrienne Tennant, an analyst with Wedbush Morgan Securities.

Whitford is trying to convince Wall Street that the retailer can reverse nearly two years of losses and sliding sales and reconnect with teenage girls, its main customer focus.

“It’s a good thing, but I need to see more progress here,” said Tennant, who had upgraded the stock to “buy” in early July, based on progress the company might make this year.

But Tennent and others were concerned about news that a company controlled by Teitelbaum, who had led Wet Seal’s growth from 18 to more than 550 stores, had sold 3.1 million shares last month. The sale “raises some concerns” about the turnaround, she said.

Wet Seal’s stock Wednesday fell 30 cents to $4.26 on Nasdaq.

The other new directors are Howard Gross, a former executive at Limited Brands Inc.’s Limited and Victoria’s Secret chains; and Henry D. Winterstern, who heads an investment firm.

The new board has nine members, seven of whom are independent.

In its latest results, Wet Seal announced that for its fiscal first quarter ended May 1, losses more than doubled to $20.3 million, or 68 cents a share.

Wet Seal will announce its second-quarter earnings Aug. 19 and release sales figures for July today.