Indigo’s president and CEO have both left the retailer
Almost a year since he took on the top job, Indigo Books & Music Inc.’s chief executive is moving on.
The Toronto-based books and home goods retailer announced Thursday that Peter Ruis has resigned, adding the board “thanks him for his contributions to the company and wishes him well as he moves on to new challenges in his career.”
His departure — for which the company offered no explanation — is the latest surprise shakeup at Indigo, which has faced a slew of leadership changes over the last year.
Andrea Limbardi, Indigo’s president and a 21-year employee of the company, announced in a LinkedIn post on Wednesday that she had left to take the helm of apparel business Reitmans Canada Ltd.
But the biggest departure Indigo has seen in recent months came from Heather Reisman, the company’s famed founder known for building Indigo into a Canadian retail stalwart with 171 stores and for adding lucrative “Heather’s Picks” stickers on top reads. She served as chief executive until last year, when Ruis took over, and retired from the board on Aug. 22.
Before her retirement, four of Indigo’s 10 directors left the board, with Chika Stacy Oriuwa attributing her resignation to a “loss of confidence in board leadership” and “mistreatment.”
Pressure was on Ruis, who was Indigo’s president before taking the top job, to bring stability to the company’s leadership and put his own stamp on Indigo. As recently as last month, he claimed his ideas have the backing of his team.
“I think we definitely have everyone’s support,” Ruis told The Canadian Press in an Aug. 25 interview.
His vision for the company centred on continuing Indigo’s longtime goal of blending books and home goods across stores.
He intended to put the strategy to the test once
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