Australia’s David Jones names new chief executive

Australian department store chain David Jones has appointed Erica Berchtold as its new chief executive officer, marking the retailer’s first female CEO in its 188-year history.

Berchtold, the retailer’s chief commercial officer since May 2025, succeeds Scott Fyfe, who has been CEO since October 2020, with immediate effect.

As chief commercial officer, Berchtold has been responsible for the department store’s supply chain for 12 months, and brings “deep expertise in e-commerce, digital transformation, brand curation and fast-paced retail innovation,” to her new role as CEO.

Before joining David Jones, Berchtold grew The Iconic into a major online retailer in Australia and New Zealand and served as managing director of Rebel Sport.

The appointment comes as the Australian retailer completes a new three-year asset-backed lending facility with Hilco, designed to strengthen its balance sheet and provide greater financial flexibility to support the company’s growth initiatives and supplier partnerships.

Commenting on her appointment, Berchtold said in a statement: “It is a tremendous honour to be appointed CEO of David Jones, one of Australia’s most iconic retail brands with a proud 188-year history.

“The refinancing allows us to stabilise and reset the business with a strong focus on growing our strategic core and modernising our technology and digital platforms. My aim is to further improve customer experience by curating our brand so that our strategy is aligned with our core values and the needs of our customers. I plan to lead our incredible team of people with decisive and results-oriented action.”

As CEO, Berchtold has been tasked with “sharpening and accelerating the execution of the company’s five-year Inspire30 transformation plan,” which includes operating model improvements for greater cost efficiency and capability, enhancing the commercial portfolio for better margins and brand strength, and “reigniting the David Jones brand through its customer offering and store network”.

David Jones is the oldest continuously operating department store in the world, still trading under its original name, and currently has 38 locations across Australia and New Zealand as well as davidjones.com in Australia.