Sweaty Betty’s chief executive Julia Straus and chief operating officer Mark Smith are both set to leave the company. The pair will step down from the business in the summer of 2023. Replacements have not yet been announced.
An official statement from Sweaty Betty, first quoted in Drapers, confirmed: ”After five years at Sweaty Betty, and growing the business threefold, CEO Julia Straus has taken the tough decision to leave the company to enable her to move back to the United States with her husband later this year and raise their daughters closer to family. Julia will continue in the role until June, playing a key part in selecting her successor, and will also be actively involved in the handover period beyond that to ensure a seamless transition period. COO Mark Smith has also decided that this year is the right time to leave Sweaty Betty to pursue new opportunities. Mark joined the business in 2011 and has overseen a retail expansion of the brand from 15 stores to 90 plus stores in that time and a tenfold growth in revenue.” Straus has been CEO of Sweaty Betty since June 2019, having previously worked as the managing director.
The two departures come after the sportswear retailer was bought by the American marketer of branded footwear, Wolverine Worldwide, for around $410 million in August 2021. In Oct. 2022, Sweaty Betty announced its turnover rose by 45 percent in 2021 compared to 2020, with revenues for the full year reaching £183.2 million (€212.3 million).
