This article originally ran in Apparelist. To read more, click here.
Gildan Activewear Inc. announces the departure of Glenn J. Chamandy as president, chief executive officer, and director of the company. Vince Tyra has been appointed president and CEO, effective Feb. 12, 2024. Craig A. Leavitt, a director of the company since 2018, will serve as interim president and chief executive officer until Tyra assumes his new position.
UPDATED DEC. 18, 2023
According to multiple news reports, several of Gildan Activewear Inc.’s shareholders are demanding Chamandy be reappointed to the company’s top post. In letters sent to Gildan’s board of directors, Browning West LP and Turtle Creek Asset Management Inc. called for the Montreal-based apparel maker to reinstate Glenn Chamandy to the board and his prior CEO post. In total, there are five investors calling for reinstatement, totaling about 25% of Gildan’s shares.
“Shareholders should decide the future if they’re not happy with the CEO,” Chamandy, 62, said in a phone interview shared by Fashion Network. “The process was flawed, and they didn’t really have a very good plan.” He added that he wasn’t ready to retire and was “excluded completely” from the board’s process.
In response, Luc Jobin, one of Gildan’s directors, has publicly stated that the former head of the company pushed the board to back a strategy of major acquisitions before he was forced out. BNN Bloomberg shared that, according to Jobin, Chamandy gave an ultimatum that he would quit unless the board agreed to work toward a significant acquisition. While Jobin didn’t name any specific deal targets, he said the proposal would have taken Gildan outside its focus on textile manufacturing and left it carrying a larger debt load.
“Back in October, we reviewed our long-term strategic plan. We were confronted with an inorganic strategy which the CEO brought forward and entailed multibillion-dollar acquisitions outside of Gildan’s core of manufacturing,” Jobin said. “These acquisitions would have been highly dilutive to shareholders. They were very high risk. They needed a lot more work for the board to consider them seriously.”
The board is also going through changes. On Dec. 17, Gildan announced a support agreement with Coliseum Capital Management LLC. Under the agreement, Coliseum will support Gildan’s full slate of board nominees at each of the 2024 and 2025 Annual Meetings of Shareholders. In addition, Yahoo Finance reports that Chris Shackelton, a co-founder and managing partner of Coliseum, has joined Gildan’s Board of Directors.
Gildan’s Next Phase
“The Board is confident that Vince is the right person to lead the company into the next stage of its evolution and growth,” says Donald C. Berg, chairman of the board, in a press release. “He has an extensive career as a global organization leader with experience as an apparel industry executive, an operator, an investor, and transitioning founder-led companies. Vince’s diverse professional background will provide the necessary leadership skills to propel Gildan to even greater success.”
The company says it remains focused on the Gildan Sustainable Growth strategy and its three pillars of innovation, capacity-driven growth, and ESG. It will continue to leverage its strengths and reinforce its “large-scale, low-cost, vertically integrated manufacturing.”
“I am looking forward to joining Gildan early in the new year,” Tyra states. “It is a truly iconic business with an unparalleled global reputation. I look forward to working closely with the board and the senior executive team, and all of the extremely talented employees to leverage their knowledge and expertise so that we continue maximizing value for all of Gildan’s stakeholders.”
Throughout a career spanning leadership roles in the apparel and investment sectors, Tyra has proved his ability to drive growth and shareholder value, while building strong teams and key relationships with a diverse range of stakeholders. He brings an understanding of the apparel industry from manufacturing processes to distribution and brand building to the position. He previously led alphabroder, serving as CEO for six years. During his time, he spearheaded the transformation of the business through a merger and tripled alphabroder’s revenue. Before that, he was president of Fruit of the Loom, where he led a turnaround of the company, ending in its sale to Berkshire Hathaway.
Tyra also brings financial experience to the role. He was an operating partner at Southfield Capital, and most recently, he served as senior vice president of corporate strategy and mergers and acquisitions at Houchens Industries — leading the strategic growth of the holding company through investments in sectors like consumer products and retail. He also served as the University of Louisville’s vice president and director of intercollegiate athletics, orchestrating the rebuilding of a major NCAA athletics program.
With Leavitt serving as interim CEO, he’ll ensure operations run smoothly and a successful transition for Tyra as the company’s new leader.
Speaking about Chamandy’s time with the company, Berg adds: “Over the span of his 40-year career, Glenn has been a forerunner in our industry, taking Gildan from a small family-owned business to a leading apparel company with over $3 billion in revenues. We thank Glenn for his service and wish him well.”
A Word from Chamandy
In a separate statement from Chamandy, he says he received a termination notice on Dec. 10 without cause.
“It is unfortunate that my vision of the path forward has differed from that of other board members,” he states. “This comes after 40 years of service in the impressively successful company founded by my family.”
Chamandy adds that he’s proud of the “robust and highly competitive organization we built” and ends his statement with a message of appreciation:
“I hold our dedicated employees in the highest regard and am continually humbled by the steadfast support from our actively engaged shareholders. I also wish to express my gratitude to our exceptional customers, who have supported us through thick and thin.”
