California Apparel News

Finding good talent is getting tricky during a time when job integrity is becoming an issue in board rooms across America following the debacles involving Enron Corp. and Worldcom Inc. executives, said Debbi Kreisler, president of executive search firm Evie Kreisler & Associates.

The apparel industry isn’t immune from the issues facing companies like Enron, Worldcom and others as an industry representative like footwear marketer Steve Madden sit in jail over a stock fraud and money laundering conviction. And last year, former Sirena Apparel executives were convicted for their roles in an accounting fraud case. The mistakes of company leaders can cost a firm millions, and executive search firms like Kreisler’s are in the business of finding top executives who can do it all and be honest at the same time.

Honesty has always been one of the top characteristics that companies seek out, said Kreisler, especially in retail and wholesaling, in which thousands of cash transactions take place daily.

“Companies want honesty, but also they want to see a great reputation and stability in the people they hire. Education is still an important factor too,” she added. Evie Kreisler & Associates has been specializing in finding jobs for the apparel industry for 24 years. Debbi Kreisler, who succeeded her mother, Evie Kreisler, when Evie retired earlier this year, is seeing an industry in flux when it comes to its chief executives down to its merchandisers.

Apparel companies are becoming more structured than in the past, Kreisler said. While there are still a lot of start-ups and incubator businesses, larger established private companies are branding more and are starting to look more like public companies in the way they operate, she added, explaining that surviving isn’t all about marketing but about financial management as well.

“Every company seems to have a different structure. That’s why we have to immerse ourselves into their corporate cultures to understand them and what they want,” she said. “You’re seeing retailers becoming more streamlined and niche-oriented. Look at companies like Chico’s.”

Kreisler said that apparel companies are especially interested in managers who are adept at controlling budgets and expenses as well as managing marketing and sales. “Finding someone who can do all this is getting tough,” she said.

And with the domestic manufacturing base slowing down, Kreisler’s firm has shifted company philosophies and is becoming more of a relationship-oriented business. According to Kreisler, “We’re streamlining who we do business with. We’re becoming more intimate with our clients. You meet people, find out their goals, learn what they want, not what you think they want. You learn by listening.”

Evie Kreisler & Associates, which was founded in the California Mart (now the California Market Center), has offices in the major fashion capitals including Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas and New York. It represents local firms like Guess? Inc. and places positions from the chief executive level down to store managers. It also fills positions related to peripheral industries relating to technology, logistics and manufacturers.

Kreisler sees similar changes on the part of job hunters as well.

“People are very cautious about change right now,” she said. “They’re not as concerned about money as they used to be, but are more interested in being with the right company.” —Robert McAllister