Patricia DeRosa, president and coo of AnnTaylor Stores Corp. (New York) announced her resignation, effective immediately. The declaration comes in the wake of a recent sales slump, which culminated in a struggling holiday selling season. For the past three months, AnnTaylor has showed declining same-store sales, while Talbots Inc. (Hingham, Mass.) posted double-digit increases during the same time period.
DeRosa, a Gap veteran, came to the specialty retailer in 1996, charged with staging a comeback for the ailing company. Along with new ceo J. Patrick Spainhour, DeRosa helped put AnnTaylor back on her feet over the next three years. But the retailer‰Ûªs stock dropped sharply in November after an announcement that the company missed its sales target for the month.
A search for her replacement is underway.