- Push-out Score determined
- After less than one year in the position
- Thanks for Talwar
- Joe Yan taking over temporarily
- Search for a successor
(exechange) — San Francisco, California, September 12, 2022 — Vijay Talwar, chief executive of ContextLogic, leaves. As announced by ContextLogic Inc. (d/b/a “Wish”) in a news release published on Thursday, September 8, 2022, and in a regulatory filing published on Monday, September 12, 2022, Vijay Talwar leaves his post as chief executive officer at the mobile ecommerce platform, after less than one year in the role, effective immediately.
ContextLogic will undertake a search for a successor.
Vijay Talwar’s duties as CEO will be taken over temporarily by Jun (Joe) Yan, currently Operating Partner at GGV Capital, as Interim Chief Executive Officer.
“Early success in our strategic turnaround”
ContextLogic did not give an explicit reason for Vijay Talwar’s departure from the CEO post. Tanzeen Syed, Chairman of the Wish Board of Directors, said: “As we outlined in our second quarter results, we are seeing early success in our strategic turnaround along our three foundational pillars: improving the consumer experience, deepening our merchant relationships and achieving operational efficiencies. We continue to be excited about our next phase of growth and all that is to come.”
Precise information regarding Vijay Talwar’s future plans was not immediately available.
“Departed/terminated”
ContextLogic said: “ContextLogic Inc. (d/b/a “Wish”) (NASDAQ: WISH), one of the world’s largest mobile ecommerce platforms, today announced that Joe Yan, Operating Partner at GGV Capital, has been appointed interim CEO, and that Vijay Talwar has departed the Company as CEO and from the Board of Directors, effective immediately. He will be available to Yan and the Board as needed to ensure a smooth transition.”
ContextLogic further said: “On September 8, 2022, the Board of Directors (the “Board”) of ContextLogic Inc. (the “Company”) announced that Vijay Talwar had been terminated from his position as Chief Executive Officer of the Company, with such termination effective September 8, 2022.”
“Not the result of any disagreement”
“Mr. Talwar’s resignation is not the result of any disagreement with the Company on any matter related to its operations, policies or practices,” ContextLogic said.
Share price decline since February 2022
The announcement follows a decline in ContextLogic Inc.’s share price of 57% since February 2022. February 2022 is the month in which Talwar’s tenure as CEO began.
In the position of CEO since 2022
Vijay Talwar became CEO of the Company in 2022.
Vijay Talwar has served as the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and as a member of the Board since February 2022.
He previously served in various capacities at Foot Locker starting in 2016, including as Chief Executive Officer of Foot Locker’s Europe, Middle East & Africa (EMEA) business from January 2019 to January 2022, where he oversaw all operational functions including finance, marketing, merchandising, and the in-store customer experience, as President – Digital (Global) from March 2018 to January 2019 and President – Digital, FootLocker.com from September 2016 to March 2018.
During his tenure at Foot Locker, he transformed the retailer’s direct-to-consumer platform as Global President of Digital.
Before Foot Locker, Talwar served as CEO, CFO and President of International, for online jewelry retailer Blue Nile Inc., where he was credited with the startup and expansion of its international business.
Earlier in his career, Talwar held various executive roles within Nike, Inc., Sears, Bain & Company and Deloitte & Touche LLP. He sits on the Board of Directors of Dunelm Group Plc, a British home furnishings retailer.
Talwar holds an M.B.A. from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, a Masters in Accounting from the University of Miami, and a B.A. in Accounting from the University of Findlay.
At the time of Vijay Talwar’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer at ContextLogic, Talwar had stated: “Wish has all the ingredients to be a true leader in the ecommerce space – a great product, an engaging and entertainment-driven social platform, a strong user base, and a world-class team that is highly motivated to deliver on the turnaround plan. I am eager to apply my own experience within the retail and ecommerce space to further refine our focus and put the business back onto a path of growth. I firmly believe the best years for Wish are right ahead of us.”
At the time of Vijay Talwar’s appointment as Chief Executive Officer at ContextLogic, Piotr Szulczewski, the Company’s former Chief Executive Officer, had stated: “Vijay is a strong leader with a track record of leading complex multinational businesses through significant periods of change. His retail and ecommerce experience, which spans both publicly and privately held companies, will be invaluable to Wish as the company continues to refocus its efforts and execute on its ambitious turnaround plan. His appointment represents a significant inflection point in Wish’s journey – we’re excited for him to get started.”
Push-out Score determined
The Push-out Score™ determined by exechange gauges the pressure surrounding Vijay Talwar’s move on a scale of 0 to 10.
exechange reached out to ContextLogic and offered the company the opportunity to comment on the score.
Read the full story in the exechange report 38.2022 ($).