Morning Coffee Dec 13 2011

Female CEO In at Warnaco, Out at Avon

By damian ghigliotty

As one woman ascends to the top, another falls.

Avon Products said it will end Andrea Jung's run as chief executive of the cosmetics company in order to get the company 'back on a growth track." Meanwhile, textile and apparel goods manufacturer Warnaco Group, which owns the brand Calvin Klein, is replacing its chief executive, Joseph Gromek, on Feb. 1, The Wall Street Journal reported.

Warnaco has picked its chief operating officer, Helen McCluskey, to succeed Gromek. McCluskey joined Warnaco to lead its intimate apparel business in 2004 and rose to its second highest position in 2010. Gromek, 65, will retire after running Warnaco for the past eight years.

McCluskey's promotion to CEO and Jung's ouster will leave the number of Fortune 1000 female CEOs at 38 following Virginia Rometty's move to chief executive of IBM. Jung will retain her title as Avon's chairman.

Avon's share price has fallen 45% so far this year. The company's third quarter earnings reported noted that it faces a couple of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission inquiries and its sales targets had become unreachable.

No matter what your gender is, it's tough at the top.

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