Dive Brief:
- After a two-year absence, Sharon Leite has returned to The Vitamin Shoppe as its CEO, according to a company news release.
- Leite was CEO of the brand from 2018 to 2023. The executive reports to the company’s board of directors.
- Leite’s appointment came as Kingswood Capital Management and Performance Investment Partners officially closed on their previously announced deal to acquire The Vitamin Shoppe from Franchise Group for just under $195 million.
Dive Insight:
Leite had a working relationship with Kingswood prior to the announced acquisition of The Vitamin Shoppe. She worked for Alex Smith — a Kingswood operating partner and executive chairman of the Kingswood portfolio company World Market — as his head of stores at Pier 1 Imports. Smith later hired Leite to be CEO at The Vitamin Shoppe during his time as chairman of The Vitamin Shoppe from 2017 to 2019, according to a Kingswood spokesperson.
“After an incredibly rewarding and successful four and a half years in the business, I am thrilled to return to The Vitamin Shoppe,” Leite said in a statement. “With the invaluable support of our partners at Kingswood and PIP — leaders in building brands and driving growth in omnichannel retail — we are primed for an exciting new era of expansion. I look forward to collaborating with the board, management team, vendor partners, and our dedicated health enthusiasts as we build a world-class health and wellness platform that delivers an unparalleled experience to our customers.”
The Vitamin Shoppe’s previous parent company, Franchise Group, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last November, citing debt of about $2 billion.
The retailer has been working to enhance its brick-and-mortar offering. In March, The Vitamin Shoppe launched a shop-in-shop concept called Hometown Stores, which features about 200 square feet of space in select stores devoted solely to prominent wholesale brands that have headquarters or a strong presence in the same area as the location.
Looking ahead, Kingswood partner Michael Niegsch and PIP partner Mark Genender said the company will invest “in a variety of brand-building strategies, including further supporting the health enthusiasts in running great stores, enhancing the company’s digital marketing and e-commerce capabilities, innovating the private brand portfolio, and working with existing and emerging third-party brands to be the best distribution partner in the market.”