Rothy’s Inc. Announces Leadership Transition Supporting Company’s Next Chapter of Growth

Retail Industry Veteran Jenny Ming Appointed CEO, Dayna Quanbeck Expands Role to President to Round Out Female-Led Executive Team.

Rothy’s Cofounders to Remain Closely Involved, Stephen Hawthornthwaite as Chair of the Board and Roth Martin as Chief Creative and Innovation Officer.

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 9, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Rothy’s, Inc. today announced that it has appointed current Board member Jenny Ming as Chief Executive Officer and Dayna Quanbeck as President, as the Company’s cofounders Stephen Hawthornthwaite (Chief Executive Officer) and Roth Martin (President) transition from their current roles to Chair of the Board and Chief Creative and Innovation Officer.

Ming is a seasoned retail executive who previously served on the 1994 founding team of Old Navy, becoming the retailer’s first President from 1999 – 2006. She went on to serve as President and CEO of Charlotte Russe from 2009 – 2019. In addition to holding a number of Board of Director roles including Levi Strauss & Co. and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan & Hospitals, Ming has served as Independent Director on Rothy’s Board of Directors since June of 2022. Working closely with Rothy’s executive team to identify growth opportunities and operational efficiencies, transitioning to CEO was a natural progression of Ming’s role at the Company, where she will have full leadership responsibilities as Rothy’s grows its global community.

Additionally, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer Dayna Quanbeck will expand her role as Rothy’s President. As President, Quanbeck will continue to oversee the deployment of growth capital and manage Rothy’s finance, logistics, data analytics, retail, international and technology divisions. As the Company invests in channel and geographical diversification, Quanbeck will drive critical operations that move the bottom line.

Founded in 2012 and launched in 2016, Rothy’s has been helmed by Hawthornthwaite and Martin for over a decade. Setting out to create a shoe with distinctive style, remarkable comfort and sustainable design, the two ultimately redefined the shoe category with a signature flat crafted from single-use plastic bottles. Diverting over 166 million bottles from landfill to date, today Rothy’s serves a global community of over 3 million through a robust ecommerce platform, growing fleet of over 20 retail stores and footprint in 19 countries. The world’s first shoe manufacturer to receive both LEED and TRUE Platinum certification, Hawthornthwaite and Martin built Rothy’s vertically-integrated model from the ground up, enabling the Company to design and commercialize with unprecedented speed, quality and environmental responsibility.

“Building Rothy’s has been the experience of a lifetime for Roth and me,” said Mr. Hawthornthwaite, Cofounder and Chair of Rothy’s Board. “After years spent laying the foundation for long-term profitable growth, we can confidently say that now is the right moment to empower our talented team to take Rothy’s into the future. Jenny is a seasoned operator with an exceptional track record in scaling global retail businesses. Coupled with Dayna’s deep knowledge of our business, having the two lead the next chapter at Rothy’s is a major win for our company, customers and team.”

Ms. Ming commented, “After decades spent in retail, it’s rare to encounter a company with such tremendous opportunity ahead. Roth and Stephen have created an exceptional product, cultivated a fiercely loyal community and built a vertically-integrated model unlike anything else in the industry. I have enjoyed working alongside them on the Board for the last 18 months, and am honored to step into this role at such an exciting time in the company’s journey. In partnership with Dayna, I look forward to taking Rothy’s brand, mission and product offering to new heights.”

Rothy’s leadership transition accompanies the Company’s significant improvement in gross margin and overall profitability. In 2023 Rothy’s expanded internationally to serve 19 total global markets and opened three new retail stores. Investing further in omnichannel growth strategies, the Company anticipates opening an additional 10 retail doors in 2024 while expanding into select wholesale partnerships and continuing broader global expansion.

Ming and Quanbeck’s appointments round out Rothy’s female-led executive team, including Chief Product and Merchandising Officer Heather Archibald, Chief Marketing Officer Jamie Gersch, Chief Supply Chain Officer Heather Howard, Chief Legal Officer and Corporate Secretary Marie Satterfield and Senior Vice President of People Michelle Velasquez Pulido.

In December 2021, Alpargatas S.A., the Brazilian lifestyle brand and global leader in open footwear, made a strategic investment of $200 million in primary capital followed by an offering to acquire approximately $275 million of Rothy’s shares from current stockholders, resulting in a post-investment valuation of $1 billion. In connection with the investment, Rothy’s Board expanded to nine total members.

About Jenny Ming:

Ms. Ming joined Gap, Inc. in 1986 and held various executive roles, including Founder and President of Old Navy from 1993 through 2006, where she oversaw all aspects of Old Navy and its 900 retail clothing stores in the U.S. and Canada. Ms. Ming then joined specialty retailer Charlotte Russe, where as President and Chief Executive Officer she oversaw over 600 stores across the United States from 2010-2019. In addition to serving as Independent Director on Rothy’s Board, Ms. Ming has also served on the Boards of Poshmark and Affirm, and currently serves on the Boards of Levi Strauss & Co., Kendra Scott, and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan & Hospitals.

About Dayna Quanbeck:

Dayna Quanbeck joined Rothy’s in 2019 as Chief Financial Officer and has overseen a diverse range of functions within the Company during her tenure. She joined the Board of Directors in April 2022, and expanded her role to include Chief Operating Officer in November the same year. Prior to joining Rothy’s, Ms. Quanbeck served as VP of Finance, and CFO of Charlotte Russe. She also spent 7 years at Bank of America Merrill Lynch in the consumer & retail investment banking group. In addition to Rothy’s, she also serves as Chair of the Audit Committee on the Board of Directors of GLO Pharma.

About Rothy’s:

Rothy’s takes a whole-brand approach to sustainability in manufacturing, transforming recycled materials into beautiful shoes, handbags and accessories. With a vertically integrated supply chain, Rothy’s minimizes waste by knitting each product to shape in its wholly-owned factory in Dongguan, China. Since launching in 2016, over 166 million single-use bottles have been transformed into Rothy’s signature thread, and over 603,000 pounds of ocean-bound plastic have been kept out of waterways.

With over 3 million customers, Rothy’s products are sold directly online and through Rothy’s 20 retail stores. Rothy’s has been recognized for awards including TIME Most Influential Companies, Fast Company Most Innovative Companies, Forbes Next Billion-Dollar Startups and Inc. Best Places to Work. Rothy’s is headquartered in San Francisco, California with offices in New York, New York, Dongguan and Shanghai, China.

Further information is available at rothys.com. Follow Rothy’s on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @rothys.

Contacts:
Rothy’s
Anna Doré
Rothy’s Senior Director of Communications
[email protected] // (415) 737-6849

SOURCE Rothy’s Inc.