SAN FRANCISCO–Robert Conway has been named chief executive officer of The Sharper Image, succeeding Steven Lightman.
The move brought a sudden and unexpected end to Lightman’s tenure as president and CEO, which began only last April. Conway is a founding member of Conway, Del Genio, Gries & Co., a financial-advisory firm that specializes in turnaround management, among other services. Jerry Levin remains as chairman of the ailing multichannel retailer. A statement issued by Sharper Image gave no reason for the change, and Levin, Conway and Lightman were unavailable for comment.
Meanwhile, the retailer’s financial woes, which began with a net loss of more than $16 million in 2006, continued. Through the first nine months of 2007, Sharper Image reported a net loss of $60.2 million and a sales dropoff of 32 percent. For November, December and January, the company posted same-store sales declines of 8 percent, 10 percent and 11 percent, respectively.