Victoria’s Secret CEO Amy Hauk steps down after just 8 months, shares plummet

Victoria’s Secret brand CEO Amy Hauk will step down after just eight months at the helm of the lingerie giant, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday.

Hauk, whose resignation is effective March 31, will also step down as CEO of PINK, the sister company that sells clothes aimed at teenagers.

News of Hauk’s departure sent shares of parent company Victoria’s Secret & Co. (VSCO) down about 5%.

“Amy Hauk will step down as CEO of Victoria’s Secret and PINK in order to spend more time with her family in Florida,” the company said in a statement.

Hauk, 56, will be replaced by longtime executive Martin Walters, who will continue in his role as CEO of Victoria’s Secret & Co.

In 2021, VSCO became a publicly traded company after being spun off from L Brands, which also owned Bath & Body Works.

Hauk, who had worked for L Brands since 2008, took over PINK in 2018 and was elevated to brand CEO at Victoria’s Secret last July.

The Post has contacted Victoria’s Secret for comment.

The Ohio-based conglomerate also announced Tuesday that it has completed its $400 million acquisition of Adore Me, the New York-based direct-to-consumer lingerie startup.

Adore Me, which recently celebrated its 10th anniversary, bills itself as “the first lingerie brand to offer extended sizes across a wide range of styles and categories.”

Victoria’s Secret hopes the acquisition of Adore Me will boost its profits and cash flow in the new year.

Sales at the parent company fell 8.5% in the third quarter year-over-year due to slower activity at its North American stores.

Victoria’s Secret & Co. also reported earnings per share of 29 cents, beating estimates but still well below the 81 cents reported in the third quarter a year earlier.

Over the past 12 months, Victoria’s Secret & Co’s stock price has fallen about 40%, outpacing the S&P 500’s decline of about 20%.

Victoria’s Secret is working to regain its once dominant position in the women’s intimate retail space.

The company, which generated north of $7.7 billion in annual sales in the early to mid-2000s, has been slow to adapt to the changing tastes of consumers who prefer “body” products, critics say. .

At the height of its power, Victoria’s Secret held more than a third of the market share in the women’s lingerie category. In 2018, its market share was around 24%.

The company has suffered another blow to its reputation after learning that Leslie Wexner, the billionaire entrepreneur credited with turning Victoria’s Secret into a monster, shared close ties to the late pedophile Jeffrey Epstein.

The brand, which was once known for promoting its slim “Angels” model, has introduced plus-size additions to its catalog in recent years in hopes of keeping up with current trends.

Last July, the company laid off 160 executive-level employees whose jobs were based at its headquarters.