Procop Named to Head Asprey
By JCK Online Staff -- JCK Online, 7/7/2008 1:55:00 PM
Robert Procop has been named the new chief executive of British luxury brand Asprey. He was most recently head of rival jewelry company Garrard.
He takes over day-to-day duties from John Rigas, chairman of Asprey and head of Sciens Capital, the US private equity firm that with Plainfield Asset Management rescued the 227-year-old retailer from insolvency in 2006, The Financial Times reports.
Rigas's main task has been removing $39.5 million of costs from the business, partly by closing expensive stores, the newspaper reports. Rigas said his turnround work was complete and he planned to step back from the business.
This will be Procop's second stint at Asprey. He briefly headed the combined Asprey & Garrard luxury business at the end of the last century before the brands were split.
Procop said he will be charged with increasing sales and market share but he will not be looking to bring Asprey into the mass market with new product categories or by opening numerous expensive stores, the newspaper reports.
