Mister Spex supervisory board proposes election of Claus-Dietrich Lahrs and Gil Steyaert

Mister Spex has announced that Claus-Dietrich Lahrs, 60, and Gil Steyaert, 61 are running for the supervisory board of the company. If elected, Lahrs will serve as chairman and Steyaert will become deputy chairman of the company’s supervisory board.

Claus-Dietrich Lahrs and Gil Steyaert will stand for election at this year's annual general meeting of Mister Spex SE on June 7 in Berlin, succeeding the previous chairman of the supervisory board, Peter Williams, and Stuart Paterson, who are both not seeking re-election.

Commenting on the nominations, Dirk Graber, CEO of Mister Spex said: "With Claus-Dietrich Lahrs and Gil Steyaert, we have found two candidates for the supervisory board who will bring remarkable expertise in the retail and fashion markets."

Claus-Dietrich Lahrs to join as Mister Spex supervisory board chairman

The company said in a statement that with a background in business administration, Lahrs held senior management positions at Cartier and Louis Vuitton in Northern Europe before he became president and CEO with Louis Vuitton in North America.

At Christian Dior Couture he was managing director for the global business. As CEO and chairman of Hugo Boss, Lahrs steered the global expansion of the brand from 2008 till 2016 before he moved to Bottega Veneta as CEO. As chairman of the management board at S.Oliver Group from 2019 till 2022, Lahrs orchestrated a restructuring program in a challenging moment for the fashion industry.

The company added that with his long-term membership in the supervisory boards of Hellmann Worldwide Logistics and Ravensburger, Lahrs brings a rich experience in corporate governance.

Gil Steyaert to become deputy chairman of Mister Spex supervisory board

​​Originally from France, Steyaert, Mister Spex said, brings a wealth of experience in the sports, fashion, and lifestyle sectors. After a decade at the Kellogg Company, most recently as vice president and marketing director for the French-speaking region, Steyaert joined Adidas in 1999 as managing director for the French market.

For over 20 years, he played a pivotal role in the brand’s European success in various capacities. He was also responsible for Adidas’s presence at the 2012 Olympic Games in London, while his tenure as managing director for western Europe saw a sales increase of over 50 percent, earning him a seat at the Adidas management board as COO global operations in 2017.

Since 2019, Steyaert has been a senior advisor for the international management consultancy Simon Kucher, focusing on transformation projects for brand companies. Additionally, he serves as a director of the board for Velcro Companies as a non-executive director.

The company further said that alongside Nicole Srock.Stanley, Birgit Kretschmer, Pietro Luigi Longo, and Nicola Brandolese, four members of the seven-member supervisory board are also standing for re-election. Additionally, Tobias Krauss has been elected until 2026.