Holt Renfrew Names New President

Holt Renfrew & Co. Ltd. (Toronto) has named Caryn Lerner as president, effective immediately.

Lerner most recently served as president and chief marketing officer of Escada (USA) Inc. (New York). She has also held senior management positions at QVC Networks (The Shopping Channel), Jones New York, Barneys New York and Bloomingdale’s.

Stuart Fraser, who had been serving as interim president of the Canadian fashion department store since March of this year — when Andrew Jennings resigned to take over as president and chief merchandising officer of Saks Fifth Ave. (New York) — will continue in his role as senior vp and cfo.

“I’m delighted to be joining Holt Renfrew at such an exciting time in the history of the Wittington Fashion Retail Group,” Lerner said. “I believe there are tremendous opportunities to leverage the global assets of the company to take Holt Renfrew to even higher levels of performance and customer satisfaction.”

“Caryn’s proven leadership skills will play a key role in the evolution of Holt Renfrew as an emerging international brand,” said chairman W. Galen Weston. “Her passionate belief in providing an extraordinary customer experience is consistent with Holt Renfrew’s strategy for the future.”