GameStop names former Amazon exec to key role
Elliot Wilke will serve as chief growth officer
GameStop Corp. shares rose Tuesday after the video-game retailer announced the appointment of a former Amazon executive to chief growth officer.
Elliott Wilke, an Amazon employee who over the past seven years worked in senior roles at Amazon Fresh, Prime Pantry and Worldwide Private Brands, has been tapped to oversee growth strategies and marketing with a focus on increasing customer loyalty. He will also work with other leaders on using customer insights and metrics to optimize channel marketing.
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| GME | GAMESTOP CORP. | 27.27 | -1.78 | -6.13% |
The Grapevine, Texas-based company also hired two executives from online pet food retailer Chewy. Andrea Wolfe will join GameStop as vice president of marketing and Tom Peterson takes over as vice president of merchandising. Both Wolfe and Peterson held the same roles at Chewy, which was co-founded by Ryan Cohen, whose investment firm RC Ventures has an approximately 13% stake in GameStop.
Cohen has led a major transformation of GameStop’s business model to one that relies on e-commerce and fast shipping.
With its new focus, the company aims to become the “ultimate destination for gamers” by building a product catalog that covers PC gaming, computers, monitors, game tables, mobile gaming, gaming TVs and other areas.
To reach the goal, Cohen has initiated a number of changes to GameStop’s leadership team, including the departure of CFO Jim Bell and the appointment of Matt Francis, former engineering leader at Amazon Web Services, as the company’s first chief technology officer.
GameStop’s e-commerce business showed signs of gaining momentum in 2020 as more customers shopped from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Global e-commerce sales, which accounted for 29% of all revenue, soared 191% from the year prior.
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Despite the improvement in online sales, GameStop recorded a net loss of $138.8 million for fiscal year 2020 after posting a $19.1 million profit the year before. Net sales slumped 21% year over year to $5.09 billion.
GameStop shares were up 862% this year through Monday.
