St. John Knits, the venerable West Coast maker of power suits for women, has rehired its former chief operating officer, as it seeks to stabilize its business in the wake of a management shake up that saw the ouster of its chief executive earlier this year.
St. John said yesterday that it had rehired Bruce Fetter, as president and chief operating officer, effective Nov. 1.
The company is still searching for a CEO to replace Richard Cohen, who resigned in April, after a push to update St. John’s image, which some say has grown stodgy, backfired.
Philip Miller, the former CEO of Saks Fifth Avenue and a St. John board member, has been serving as interim CEO until a permanent replacement is found.
In addition to reinstating Fetter, who spent eight years at the company before resigning in 2005, Miller has encouraged greater involvement of the founding Gray family, including Marie Gray, who has been working with the design team.