A Masterclass in The State of Retail & Retail Turnarounds with Michael Appel, Managing Director, Getzler Henrich & Associates

The Voice of Retail

Meet Michael Appel, a seasoned senior executive with over 50 years of experience in the retail industry, including turnaround CEO at Rue21. As the Managing Director at New York-based Getzler Henrich & Associates, he leads the Retail Practice for the firm, specializing in operational turnarounds for retail businesses. We talk about the state of retail today, the role of social media and the China Factory Direct model, what has actually changed with the modern consumer and what has stayed the same, what it takes to compete in 2024 and beyond, and what it takes to come back from the brink and creative a positive forward momentum. Let's listen in now.

You can reach Michael at C: 917-789-3615

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Michael Appel is a Managing Director at Getzler Henrich & Associates, based in New York City. Michael leads the Retail Practice for the firm.

Michael has expertise in women’s apparel, accessories, menswear, childrenswear, and all categories of home furnishings across department stores, specialty stores, luxury, off-price, and direct response channels of distribution. Michael graduated from Brandeis University (Phi Beta Kappa) and has an MBA with Distinction from Harvard Business School. Over the years, he has served on multiple corporate and non-profit boards, including serving as the Chairman of the Compensation Committee for Charming Shoppes, and as Chairman at Loehmann’s.

Select experiences include:

• Served as CEO and Chairman of rue21, the 700-unit omnichannel fast-fashion retailer, where he led the company’s successful turnaround from its emergence from Chapter 11 between 2017 and 2020.
• Served as the Interim CEO for Laura Ashley, Wilkes Bashford, and Baccarat. Additionally, he has provided turnaround services for Kenneth Cole, Avery Boardman, Versa Partners, and DW Partners
• Served as Financial Advisor to the Creditor’s Committee of Kasper ASL, a leading manufacturer of women’s apparel under the Kasper and Anne Klein brands. For his work on Kasper, the Turnaround Management Association awarded Michael its Large Company Turnaround of the Year Award
• Provided strategic advisory, due diligence, and expert witness consulting services to retailers, financial institutions, law firms, and consumer product companies.
• Was retained at HCI Direct as CRO to oversee the company’s prepackaged Chapter 11 proceedings and the successful implementation of its restructuring plan. With the departure of HCI Direct’s CEO, he was named Interim CEO, successfully managing the business, achieving planned goals, introducing a new product line, and recruiting a new CEO.

Currently, Michael serves on the Board of Ashley Stewart, Inc., the Advisory Board of FIT’s Global Fashion Management MBA program and is a member of The Fashion Group and the Turnaround Management Association, where he served on their National Board, and was Chairman of the TMA Awards Committee.

About Michael

Michael is the president and founder of M.E. LeBlanc & Company Inc, a senior retail advisor, keynote speaker and media entrepreneur. He has been on the front lines of retail industry change for his entire career. He has delivered keynotes, hosted fire-side discussions and participated worldwide in thought leadership panels, most recently on the main stage in Toronto at Retail Council of Canada’s Retail Secure conference with leaders from The Gap and Kroger talking about violence in retail stores, keynotes on the state & future of retail in Orlando and Halifax, and at the 2023 Canadian GroceryConnex conference, hosting the CEOs of Walmart Canada, Longo's and Save-On-Foods Canada. Michael brings 25+ years of brand/retail/marketing & eCommerce leadership experience with Levi's, Black & Decker, Hudson's Bay, Pandora Jewellery, The Shopping Channel and Retail Council of Canada to his advisory, speaking and media practice.
Michael also produces and hosts a network of leading retail trade podcasts, including the award-winning No.1 independent retail industry podcast in North America, Remarkable Retail,
Canada's top retail industry podcast; the Voice of Retail; Canada's top food industry and the top Canadian-produced management independent podcasts in the country, The Food Professor, with Dr. Sylvain Charlebois.
Rethink Retail has recognized Michael as one of the top global retail influencers for the fourth year in a row, Coresight Research has named Michael a Retail AI Influencer, and you can tune into Michael’s cooking show, Last Request BBQ, on YouTube, Instagram, X and yes, TikTok.
Available for keynote presentations helping retailers, brands and retail industry insiders explaining the current state of the retail industry in Canada and the U.S., and the future of retail.