NEW YORK, June 28, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The Barington
Group, which collectively beneficially owns more than 1.5% of the
outstanding shares of common stock of Chico's FAS, Inc. (NYSE:
CHS), announced today that it has sent a letter to the Company's
stockholders in connection with its solicitation of proxies to
elect its two highly qualified nominees to the Chico's Board.
The Barington Group's full letter can be viewed by clicking the
following link: http://tinyurl.com/z6dw8nf.
In the letter, the Barington Group outlines the key reasons why
stockholders should elect its nominees James Mitarotonda and Janet Grove to the Chico's Board at the 2016
Annual Meeting which is scheduled to be held on July 21, 2016. Specifically:
- Barington has a 16-year record of helping improve long-term
value and protecting stockholder interests at underperforming
companies. Barington also has substantial experience
investing in retail and apparel companies, with prior investments
in companies such as Dillard's, The Children's Place, The Jones
Group, Warnaco, Nautica, Steve
Madden, Payless ShoeSource and Stride Rite. Each of
these companies has shown a meaningful improvement in shareholder
value following Barington's involvement.
- The Company's share price performance under the current Board
has significantly underperformed its peers and the market as a
whole over the past one, two, three, five and ten-year periods and
its common stock is down more than 30% over the past twelve
months.
- A majority of the Board's incumbent directors are responsible
for the Company's disastrous acquisition of Boston Proper, which
was sold in January 2016 for a
$200 million loss.
- While Chico's is inundating stockholders with letters and even
a video promising a bright future, the Company's latest quarterly
financial results indicate a less than rosy picture: sales for the
first quarter of fiscal 2016 were down -7.9% from the comparable
quarter last year (or -4.4% excluding the impact of Boston Proper),
and comparable store sales were down -4.2%, resulting in a 17%
decline in adjusted earnings per share.
- Despite the Company's disappointing financial results, the
Board is spending approximately $6
million in its campaign to ward off helpful stockholder
input. Barington believes this is an irresponsible waste of
the Company's resources and indicative of a lack fiscal discipline
at the Board.
- Despite what Chico's would have stockholders believe, this
proxy solicitation is not a referendum on the Company's new CEO,
Shelley Broader. Ms.
Broader will continue as the CEO and as a director of the Company
regardless of the outcome of the proxy solicitation, and it is
Barington's strong hope that she will be successful.
Rather, this is a campaign to add independent,
stockholder-focused directors to the Chico's Board to help
ensure that the Board thoughtfully considers all options to improve
long-term value and that stockholder interests are protected in the
boardroom.
- Barington has formulated a comprehensive plan designed to
unlock the Company's long-term value potential that we are
convinced could more than double its earnings per share in three
years. In the coming days, Barington will be releasing a
detailed presentation to its fellow stockholders that contains more
information concerning its plan.
- Board nominee Bonnie Brooks, the
Vice Chairman of Hudson's Bay
Company, would have a material conflict of interest if she served
on the Chico's board, as Hudson's
Bay Company's department stores – including Saks Fifth Avenue and
Lord & Taylor – directly compete with the Company's three
brands in virtually every product category. The Barington
Group questions the judgment of the Board's incumbent
directors to put the Company in a position where its
strategic plans and confidential information could fall into the
hands of its competitors.
- Chico's stockholders can help protect their interests by
electing the Barington Group's experienced, independent
nominees -- James Mitarotonda
and Janet Grove -- in place of Bonnie
Brooks, who is deeply conflicted, and Janice Fields, the Chair of the Nominating
Committee and a member of the Compensation Committee, who we
believe should be held responsible for the poor performance of
these committees.
The Barington Group encourages stockholders to visit its
website, www.barington.com/chicos.html, dedicated to the election
of its two highly qualified stockholder representatives to the
Chico's Board at the Company's upcoming 2016 Annual Meeting.
The Barington Group's nominees are:
James A. Mitarotonda – Mr.
Mitarotonda, 62, is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of
Barington Capital Group, L.P. Mr. Mitarotonda is an
experienced public company director who has served on more than a
dozen boards and has helped numerous public companies improve their
long-term financial performance, corporate governance and executive
compensation practices. Mr. Mitarotonda is extremely
experienced representing and protecting stockholder interests on
public company boards.
Janet E. Grove – Ms.
Grove, 65, has over 40 years of retail industry experience,
including serving as Vice Chairman of Macy's, Inc., a leading
department store chain, and as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
of Macy's Merchandising Group, where she was responsible for
designing, sourcing, marketing and merchandising Macy's private
branded products and managing key vendor relationships. Since
leaving Macy's, Ms. Grove has served as an advisor to the CEO and
senior management team of Karstadt Department Stores, one of
Germany's largest department store
chains. She has also served as a director of Aeropostale,
Inc., a specialty retailer of teen apparel, and Safeway, Inc., one
of the largest food and drug retailers in the United States, and can help add much
needed apparel merchandising experience to the Chico's Board.
THE CHOICE IS CLEAR: VOTE THE BLUE PROXY
CARD
NOW TO PROTECT THE VALUE OF YOUR
INVESTMENT!
If you have any questions or need assistance in voting the
Barington Group's BLUE proxy card, please contact the
Barington Group's proxy solicitor, Okapi Partners LLC.
OKAPI PARTNERS LLC
1212 Avenue of the Americas, 24th Floor
New York, NY 10036
(212) 297-0720
Stockholders Call Toll-Free at: (877)
566-1922
E-mail:
info@okapipartners.com
About Barington Capital Group, L.P.:
Barington Capital Group, L.P. is a fundamental, value-oriented
activist investment firm that was established by James A. Mitarotonda in January 2000.
Barington invests in undervalued publicly traded companies that
Barington believes can appreciate significantly in value as a
result of a change in corporate strategy or improvements in
operations, capital allocation or corporate governance.
Barington's investment team, advisors and network of industry
experts draw upon their extensive strategic, operating and
boardroom experience to assist companies in designing and
implementing initiatives to improve long-term shareholder
value. Barington has substantial experience investing in
retail and other consumer-focused companies, with prior investments
in Dillard's, The Children's Place, The Jones Group, Warnaco,
Nautica, Steve Madden, Payless
ShoeSource, Stride Rite, Collective Brands, Maxwell Shoe, Avon Products, Lone Star
Steakhouse, Darden Restaurants and Harry
Winston, among others.
CONTACTS:
Jared L. Landaw
Chief Operating Officer
Barington Capital Group, L.P.
Email: jlandaw@barington.com
Tel: (212) 974-5713
Okapi Partners LLC
Email: info@okapipartners.com
Tel: (212)
297-0720
(877)
566-1922 (toll-free)
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SOURCE Barington Capital Group, L.P.