Carter’s Appoints Build-A-Bear Chief Exec Sharon Price John as CEO

Sharon Price John, who led Build-A-Bear Workshop over 13 years, is joining Carter’s as president and CEO as of June 15. Former Carter’s CEO Doug Palladini, who joined the Atlanta-based company one year ago after an 18-year run at Vans, has departed the company, effective immediately.

CFO and COO Richard Westernberger will also serve as Interim CEO and President until John’s start date. Carter’s, which sells its Carter’s and OshKosh B’gosh brands through more than 1000 owned stores in North America, is in a period of transformation.

In November, the company announced plans to close approximately 150 stores over the next three years and plans to cut 300 office positions by the end of 2025. Net sales increased 2% to $2. 898 billion in fiscal 2025, which ended December 2025. John is a Children’s Brand Veteran John previously announced she would retire from Build-A-Bear as of June 11.

Over her tenure, John diversified the company’s business model beyond malls, drove e-commerce growth, expanded into the gifting and collecting markets and implemented content marketing strategies. In 2025, following the pandemic and retail headwinds, Build-A-Bear delivered its fifth consecutive year of record results.

“[John’s] success in revitalizing Build-A-Bear gives us confidence in her ability to accelerate the work underway at Carter’s and leverage the power of our iconic brands to drive sustainable growth and shareholder value creation,” said Gretchen W. Schar, incoming Non-Executive Chair of Carter’s Board of Directors in a statement.

“Carter’s is showing solid momentum and we believe Sharon is the perfect fit to lead the Company into the future.” Before joining Build-A-Bear, Ms. John held a number of executive positions, including President of Stride Rite Children’s Group and GM and SVP of Hasbro’s Global Playskool business.

She has also worked at Mattel as the VP of International Marketing for the Disney business unit and as a Director of the Barbie brand. “For over 160 years, Carter’s has been a trusted resource as generations of young parents have made this brand their first choice in clothing for the many amazing moments in the life of a child,” John said.

“I am delighted to be joining a company with such a proud history and honored to be entrusted with leading it forward at this pivotal moment.” Streamlining the Business and Managing Tariffs Outgoing Non-Executive Chair of the Board William Montgoris thanked Palladini for his contributions to Carter’s.

“At the Board’s direction, Doug led a series of initiatives to help Carter’s manage the onset of record tariffs, streamline the organization structure, and improve the quality and productivity of our retail store fleet,” Montgoris said. “We believe it is the right time to transition Carter’s leadership.

We sincerely appreciate Doug’s contributions and wish him all the best in his next chapter.” Carter’s reaffirmed its outlook and will report results on May 6.