Just six months after suspending him for alleged misconduct, American Apparel has fired its own founder and chief executive, Dov Charney.
The retail giant announced on Tuesday that Paula Schneider, formerly an executive at Warnaco Swimwear Group, will be taking Charney’s place as the company’s first female CEO.
In an earlier statement, David Danziger, co-chairman of the AA board, claimed that the company “needs a permanent CEO who can bring stability and strong leadership in this time of transition, and we believe Ms. Schneider fits the bill perfectly.”
Charney, who founded the company 25 years ago in his dorm room, had his chief executive title stripped from him back in June after dodging several sexual harassment complaints, some of which included accusations that he discriminated against members of the staff whom he did not consider attractive because he felt that they undermined the American Apparel aesthetic. The company also opened an investigation after claiming that he misused corporate money.
In recent months, Charney has been serving as a consultant to the company but, on Tuesday, AA finally decided that “it would not be appropriate for Mr. Charney to be reinstated as CEO or an officer or employee.”
Beginning in January 2015, Schneider will be replacing Scott Brubaker, who is currently serving as the company’s interim CEO.
“My goal is to make American Apparel a better company, while staying true to its core values of quality and creativity and preserving its sweatshop-free, Made in USA manufacturing philosophy,” Schneider said in a statement.
Despite his surprise that the board he put together to run his own company chose to get rid of him, Charney still said in a statement, “I’m proud of what I created at American Apparel and am confident that, as its largest shareholder, I will have a strong relationship with the company in the years ahead.”