Barclays has appointed Cathy Leonhardt as the global head of retail within its Investment Banking Group, based in New York. Leonhardt reports to Lowell Strug, global head of Barclay’s Consumer and Retail Group.

 Leonhardt reportedly has over 28 years of investment banking experience advising management teams and boards on strategically important domestic and cross-border transactions in the Consumer and Retail sectors.

Leonhardt joins Barclays from Solomon Partners, where she was a partner and the co-head of its Consumer Retail Investment Banking group. She joined Solomon Partners in 2003 and has advised on transactions across retail, apparel and consumer sectors, including PVH’s sale of Warners and Heritage Brands, the sale of Rag & Bone, PVH’s acquisitions of Tommy Hilfiger and Warnaco Group, and Walmart in the company’s divestiture of its direct-to-consumer brands in 2023.

Before Solomon, Leonhardt worked as a VP at Morgan Stanley in the M&A Group from 1996. She was an advisor on Sears’ acquisition of Land’s End, Tommy Hilfiger Corporation’s acquisition of Tommy Europe, Jones Apparel’s acquisition of McNaughton, the merger of Monsanto and Pharmacia, Georgia-Pacific’s spin-off of The Timber Company to Plum Creek, and the sale of Donna Karan’s beauty business to Estée Lauder.

Leonhardt began her career in 1992 at Wachovia in the U.S. Corporate Banking Group.

“As the Consumer and Retail sector continues to evolve and experience an accelerating pace of change, our clients more than ever depend on Barclays for strategic advice and seamless execution,” said Strug. “As a strategic hire for our investment banking business, Cathy’s deep relationships in the Consumer and Retail space, combined with her extensive transaction experience and proven leadership qualities, will be of enormous value to our clients and colleagues.”

“The Consumer and Retail space represents a critical opportunity set for our investment banking business, and the team has seen consistently outstanding results in the sector over the years, playing major roles in a number of landmark transactions,“ added Taylor Wright, global co-head of Banking at Barclays. “Cathy will ensure that we build on our business strengths and momentum and continue to drive mind and market share with our clients. We are delighted to welcome Cathy to Barclays.”

Images courtesy Barclays