Tiffany Appoints Roger Farah as Chairman

NEW YORK, United States — Tiffany & Co.'s board elected Roger Farah as its next chairman, turning to a longtime Ralph Lauren Corp. executive for guidance as the luxury brand works to reignite growth.

Farah will take over the job on October 2 from Michael Kowalski, who will stay on as a director, Tiffany said on Thursday.

The 64-year-old Farah, who most recently served as a co-chief executive of Tory Burch LLC, joined Tiffany's board after the hedge fund activist Jana Partners LLC invested in the jeweller and began pushing for changes. He was one of three board directors that Jana put in earlier this year.

The New York-based jeweller has been trying to add more innovative products and revive store traffic. Tiffany made a series of management changes in the past year, including hiring a former Diesel SpA executive as its new chief executive officer.

Kowalski, who has been chairman since 2002, was chief executive of Tiffany from 1999 until 2015. He then began a stint as interim chief this year before Diesel’s Alessandro Bogliolo was hired. Bogliolo will join the company next month.

“With the appointment of Alessandro as our new CEO, and under Roger’s leadership on the board, I believe we are well positioned,” Kowalski said in a statement.

By Stephanie Wong; editors: Nick Turner and Cecile Daurat.