Modell’s Sporting Goods has hired Deborah Fine as its first chief commercial officer. Fine wlil be responsible for developing and leading organization-wide execution of a focused, integrated strategy to drive traffic, convert traffic to sales, and increase sales per customer in the most efficient manner.
She will lead its digital strategy, transforming Modell’s into an omnichannel retailer. These initiatives will be developed from a customer point of view, ensuring a consistent and best in class experience in our stores and on its website. Its digital presence will expand beyond Modells.com, growing its social media footprint as well as developing new interactive digital experiences for our customers. Fine will ensure alignment of initiatives across the organization to achieve our digital goals.
Mitchell Modell, chief executive officer, continues the expansion of Modell’s with the addition to Fine and its newest location on 34th & 7th Ave in Midtown Manhattan bringing Modell’s to 156 retail locations in the Northeast.
Said Modell, “We’re very excited to bring Deborah onboard and continue the growth of our successful executive leadership team. She will be a great asset and play an intricate role in positioning Modell’s as top Omnichannel retailer and expanding our new business ventures while we progress further into our 125th Anniversary.”
Fine began her management career at Conde Nast, where she led their two largest businesses to record profit as vice president and publisher of Glamour and publisher of Bride’s. She also created and executed the weddingchannel.com and Federated Department Store partnership as Condé Nast’s first online initiative. She then joined AVON as the founder and president of their global youth and digital business Mark, growing the division to $100M in incremental retail sales in the first 18 months. From brand development and customer intimacy to retail and direct sales, she directly leveraged the internet to help redefine the Avon model.
Fine became the Chief Executive Officer of Victoria’s Secret PINK. She led PINK into a diverse lifestyle brand achieving nearly $1 billion in incremental sales and set the stage for the development of new beauty and accessory categories. She drove an unprecedented +39% response rate through the development of a new digital strategy for PINK.
She then moved to NBC Universal Digital Media in 2006 as President, iVillage Properties, the world’s first and largest online community for women, with 27 million members across the globe. She executed a complete turnaround of this $100M business resulting in operating break even for the first time in its 12 year history, with + 35% in revenue, outpacing the industry by 30%, 23 consecutive months of year-over-year traffic growth, and a 91% increase in brand awareness.
Most recently Fine was the chief executive officer of Direct Brands, Inc., the largest member-based retailer for media products in the US. Direct Brands is the parent company of 24 multi-channel businesses with 8 million members including iconic brands such as Book of the Month Club, Children’s Book of the Month Club, Doubleday, and Columbia House. She quadrupled the cash balance of the company over a 2 year period, and exceeded profit targets by 200%.
In 2013, Fine was named to the Board of Directors of Pet360, a privately-held comprehensive network of leading content, community, and ecommerce for pet owners, and she was appointed to the University of Pennsylvania Institute for Diabetes, Obesity, and Metabolism Leadership Council. In 2014, she was elected to the Board of Directors of both Active International, the leader in worldwide barter, and a consumer products portfolio company of TPG Growth.
Fine is a Cum Laude Graduate of the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. She resides in the tri-state area with her husband and two sons. She is a passionate $1 million fundraiser for the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.
