Claudia Lima-Guinehut
Childrens PlaceAbout Claudia Lima-Guinehut
Claudia Lima-Guinehut is Brand President at The Children’s Place (PLCE), rejoining the company effective September 9, 2024 after serving as EVP & Chief Merchandising Officer at Claire’s Holdings LLC from June 2023 to August 2024 . She is 46, holds a BS in Marketing from NYU and an MBA from Columbia University’s SIPA, and oversees all customer-facing activities across PLCE’s family of brands, including design, sourcing, merchandising, brand marketing, planning, allocation, wholesale, and international businesses . In her prior PLCE tenure (2014–2023), she rose to Senior Vice President, Global Merchandising & Strategic Partnerships, leading product strategies across brands and channels plus wholesale and international franchise operations . The company’s incentive structures emphasize adjusted EPS, operating margin expansion, adjusted ROIC, and ESG metrics (Better Cotton, DE&I), with a relative ROIC modifier guiding PRSU outcomes over multi-year periods .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Children’s Place | Senior Vice President, Global Merchandising & Strategic Partnerships | 2014–2023 | Drove product strategies across brands and channels; led wholesale and international franchise operations |
| Destination Maternity | Director of International Merchandising | 2011–2014 | Led international merchandising initiatives |
| The Children’s Place | Brand President | Appointed Aug 23, 2024; effective Sep 9, 2024 | Oversees all customer-facing brand functions; reports to President & Interim CEO |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Claire’s Holdings LLC | EVP & Chief Merchandising Officer | Jun 2023–Aug 2024 | Led merchandising strategy at a global accessories retailer |
| Zara; Camuto Group; Ralph Lauren; Fifth & Pacific Companies | Merchandising/Product Design roles | Not disclosed | Progression through merchandising/design functions at leading apparel/accessories brands |
Fixed Compensation
| Metric | FY 2022 | FY 2023 | FY 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salary ($) | $500,000 | $173,973 | $228,366 |
| Non-Equity Incentive Plan Compensation ($) | $0 | $0 | $200,000 |
| Stock Awards ($) | $1,250,011 | $0 | $844,200 |
| All Other Compensation ($) | $12,911 | $5,301 | $506 |
| Total ($) | $1,762,922 | $179,274 | $1,273,072 |
Performance Compensation
Annual Bonus Plan Structure (Company Policy)
| Component | Details |
|---|---|
| Target bonus as % of salary | CEO: 160%; other NEOs: 50%–100% (range, position-specific) |
| Primary metric | Adjusted Operating Income; payout 0–200% depending on threshold/target/maximum performance |
| FY 2023 payouts | No bonuses paid; company performance below AOI threshold |
PRSU Metrics and Weighting (LTIP)
| Metric | Weighting | Target (disclosure) | Actual/Payout (disclosure) | Vesting |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adjusted EPS | 50% | Not disclosed (future targets not disclosed) | Not disclosed (until vesting) | Three-year performance period; cliff vesting at end |
| Adjusted Operating Margin Expansion | 20% | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Three-year performance period; cliff |
| Adjusted ROIC | 20% | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Three-year performance period; cliff |
| Responsibly Sourced (Better Cotton) | 5% | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Three-year performance period; cliff |
| Black/African American Associate Representation | 5% | Not disclosed | Not disclosed | Three-year performance period; cliff |
| Relative Adjusted ROIC Modifier | +/-38% | Relative ranking vs peer group | Applies at period end | Three-year performance period; cliff |
2024 Grants (as disclosed for NEOs)
- TRSUs granted Nov 1, 2024 with vesting May 29, 2025 (employment condition) .
- PRSUs granted Nov 1, 2024 with performance periods FY 2025 & FY 2026; 50% may vest April 2026 and 50% April 2027, subject to targets and continued employment .
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Beneficial ownership | 29,656 shares as of April 8, 2025; less than 1.0% of outstanding shares |
| Unvested TRSUs (as of FY-end 2024) | 20,000; market value $195,800 (at $9.79 per share) |
| Unearned PRSUs (as of FY-end 2024) | 40,000; market/payout value $391,600 at target (at $9.79 per share) |
| Upcoming vesting dates | TRSUs: May 29, 2025; PRSUs: potential April 2026 and April 2027 (subject to performance) |
| Stock ownership guidelines | Brand President/SVPs: 3x base salary; retention requirement to hold 67% of net shares until guideline met |
| Hedging/pledging | Prohibited for directors, officers, employees (Insider Trading Policy) |
Employment Terms
- Appointment: Announced August 23, 2024; effective September 9, 2024, as Brand President .
- Severance (non-CIC): If terminated without cause, salary continuation for the greater of company guidelines or 12 months; subject to release, confidentiality, non-solicitation, and non-competition equal to severance period; offset by earnings from new employment during severance .
- Change-in-control (CIC) agreement: Term is two years, auto-renews for one-year terms unless 90 days’ notice; double-trigger vesting; severance upon termination without cause or for good reason within two years post-CIC equals 1.5× the sum of base salary and average actual bonuses over prior three years; no excise tax gross-ups (best-net or cut-down methodology) .
- CIC definition includes >50% change in voting power; PLCE experienced a CIC in Feb 2024 when Mithaq acquired >50% of outstanding common stock .
Potential Payments (Assuming event at FY 2024 year-end)
| Scenario | Severance ($) | Payment of Time-Based RSUs ($) | Payment of Performance-Based RSUs ($) | Health & Welfare ($) | Total ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| By Company without cause | $625,000 (salary continuation) | $0 | $0 | $506 | $625,506 |
| Following Change in Control | $1,237,500 (lump sum) | $195,800 | $391,600 | $759 | $1,825,659 |
| Death | $0 | $195,800 | $391,600 | $0 | $587,400 |
| Disability | $0 | $195,800 | $391,600 | $0 | $587,400 |
Investment Implications
- Alignment and retention: Ownership guidelines (3× salary) and mandatory post-vest holding (67% net shares) plus anti-hedging/pledging policies support alignment; however, her beneficial ownership (<1%) is small relative to the float dominated by Mithaq (62.2%), tempering direct equity alignment leverage .
- Near-term vesting/selling pressure: A 20,000-share TRSU tranche vests May 29, 2025; potential PRSU vesting events in April 2026 and April 2027 could create windows for insider sales or withholding transactions; monitor Form 4s around these dates for trading signals .
- CIC economics and retention risk: With a CIC already occurred (Feb 2024), her agreement provides 1.5× base+bonus average upon qualifying termination within two years, which reduces personal risk but can incentivize stability or, conversely, facilitate departure if strategic direction misaligns; double-trigger vesting mitigates windfall optics .
- Pay-for-performance: Company bonus plan ties payouts to adjusted operating income (0–200% of target); zero payouts in FY 2023 underscore discipline; PRSUs emphasize adjusted EPS, margin, ROIC and ESG/relative ROIC, aligning incentives with strategic value drivers .
- Governance practices: Clawback policies and robust ownership/holding requirements reduce adverse incentive risks; continue to track proxy updates for any changes to peer group or modifiers that could ease targets .