Secret Sales taps six new senior hires amid expansion

Secret Sales has announced six hires to newly created director-level positions amid rapid growth at the British discount fashion marketplace.

It comes after the company announced in June it had secured 10 million euros in Series A funding to help expand its UK operations and launch in new territories in 2021.

Shahnila Rashid has joined the company as chief trading officer. Most recently she was CEO of retail and e-commerce at SR Retail Consultancy, and earlier in her career spent nine years at TJX as vice president and merchandising director, where she played a key role in expanding TK Maxx across Europe.

Next, Fiona Lay has been appointed as digital director. She spent 17 years at Debenhams, rising through the ranks to the position of digital and trading director, where she oversaw the retailer’s transition and growth into online shopping. Earlier in her career, she was senior merchandiser at Marks & Spencer.

Sarah Savva has been named Secret Sales’ external relationships director. She was previously business lead for third party brands at Marks & Spencer, prior to which she spent 29 years at Debenhams, most recently as director of external business, where she managed all external relationships and brand partnerships, achieving annual sales of over 550 million pounds.

Meanwhile, Cathy Reid has been appointed as customer excellence director, effective October. She joins from Mountain Warehouse, where she was head of customer experience. Previously she was customer director at Ann Summers, head of retail and store operations at Mamas and Papas, and held in-store managerial roles for ten years at Signet Jewelers and Arcadia.

Slew of senior hires announced at Secret Sales

Lucy Malcolm Green has been hired as head of digital merchandising. Most recently, she was team leader for digital merchandising at German luxury e-tailer Mytheresa, where she was in charge of the merchandising strategy across all the company’s European and worldwide websites. Earlier in her career, she was an e-commerce trader at Pandora, and merchandiser for womenswear and shoes at Harrods.

Finally, Stacey Sue has joined the company as finance director. She was most recently chief financial officer at Beach London, and also held the same role at Facegym. Earlier in her career, she was finance director at Lulu Guinness and financial controller at Matchesfashion.

“We have appointed a supergroup of retail stars whose collective experience has helped shape the industry, from the early years of digital transformation to today’s online-first world,” said Secret Sales CEO Chris Griffin in a release.

“Our new hires recognise how powerful our business model is - brands and retailers need a brand-enhancing partnership route for non-full price stock, and Secret Sales is revolutionising the fashion industry by providing this platform.

“The calibre of our team will enable us to fulfil our promise to grow and become the dominant player in the premium discount space.”

The company said it has also appointed 20 additional staff members alongside the exec hires to support the growth of the business.

The company said it plans to launch in new territories in the autumn.