Sharon Leite is embarking on a second tour of duty at The Vitamin Shoppe.
Kingswood Capital Management and Performance Investment Partners, the private equity firms that just bought The Vitamin Shoppe, announced Leite’s return to the retailer as its chief executive officer on Tuesday. Leite served as The Vitamin Shoppe’s CEO from 2018 to 2023, but left to become CEO of Ideal Image, a chain of med spas, and later CEO of Omni Retail Enterprises, the parent company of brands operating e-commerce including Bodybuilding.com, Pier 1 Imports and DressBarn.com.
The new owners indicated that the rest of the executive leadership team at The Vitamin Shoppe — which includes the president of the company Muriel Gonzalez — remains in place. The private equity firms bought The Vitamin Shoppe from the Franchise Group Inc. for an undisclosed price. The deal was completed this month.
“With the invaluable support of our partners at Kingswood and PIP — leaders in building brands and driving growth in omnichannel retail — we are primed for an exciting new era of expansion,” Leite said in a statement. “I look forward to collaborating with the board, the management team, vendor partners and our dedicated ‘health enthusiasts’ as we build a world-class health and wellness platform that delivers an unparalleled experience to our customers.”
Sharon Leite
Courtesy image
The partners said they will be investing in a variety of brand-building strategies, including further supporting the health enthusiasts in running The Vitamin Shoppe stores, enhancing the company’s digital marketing and e-commerce capabilities, innovating the private brand portfolio, and working with existing and emerging third-party brands “to be the best distribution partner in the market.”
During her first tour, Leite launched a new, more modern and easier to shop store format, accelerated the digital side of the business, expanded private label offerings, grew third-party brand partnerships and the Healthy Awards loyalty program, and initiated international expansion with Vietnam.
She is succeeding Lee Wright as CEO.
It’s unusual for a CEO to leave a retailer and then come back years later, though the late Myron Ullman 3rd had two stints as CEO of JCPenney, and Howard Schultz had two stints as CEO at Starbucks. Also, Bob Iger is currently in his second tour of duty as CEO of Disney.
With the acquisition just finalized Monday, The Vitamin Shoppe board has been reorganized with new members, including Leite as well as Alex Smith and Beth Kaplan and representatives from Kingswood and PIP. Smith is a Kingswood operating partner and the current executive chairman of World Market, which is part of the Kingswood portfolio. Previously, Smith was executive chairman and then chairman of The Vitamin Shoppe, CEO of Pier 1 Imports, and earlier, she held senior management positions at The TJX Companies.
Kaplan was president and chief operating officer of Rent the Runway. Earlier, she served as president, chief merchandising and marketing officer, and director of General Nutrition Centers. Before that, she held leadership positions at Bath & Body Works, Rite Aid Drugstores and Procter & Gamble.
The Secaucus, N.J.-based The Vitamin Shoppe sells nutritional solutions, including vitamins, minerals, sports nutrition, specialty supplements, herbs, homeopathic remedies, and green living products.