Apparel company American Eagle Outfitters has hired Sarah Clarke as its new chief supply chain officer.
In the role, Clarke will oversee American Eagle’s entire global supply chain, from sourcing through distribution. She reports to CEO and Executive Chairman Jay Schottenstein beginning Oct. 30.
Clarke previously served as supply chain chief at Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein owner PVH from 2021 until fall 2022. She joined PVH in 2013 and held various roles at the company, including president of supply for North America. Prior to that she held roles at Gap Inc., including in sourcing, merchandising, supply chain strategy and global production.
American Eagle described Clarke as “a strategic business leader with extensive experience in supply chain management across several large-scale, multi-brand retail organizations.”
American Eagle sources its products primarily from Asia. For the previous fiscal year, it relied on some 330 suppliers, with no single vendor or factory supplying more than 10% its merchandise, according to its 10-K.
The company doesn’t break out how much it sources from China, but lists trade disputes with the country as among the risks to its business.
Further down the supply chain, American Eagle owns distribution centers in Pennsylvania, Kansas and Ontario, as well as its Quiet Logistics regional distribution centers located throughout the U.S. The company also contracts with third-party distribution centers in Mexico, Hong Kong and Japan to service its stores and e-commerce operations in those regions.
This year, American Eagle has seen the performance of its supply chain improve, and its costs have come down. In Q2, inventories were down more than 7% and its cost of sales has fallen by nearly 10%, while its operating margin has grown, according to a Supply Chain Dive analysis of the industry.
The company has also rolled out a new artificial intelligence-based tool to help manage inventory replenishment so that American Eagle can keep leaner stocks, with promising early results.
Clarke, who will also hold the EVP title, is part of the transition around COO Michael Rempell’s departure from American Eagle.
