The Executive Will Now Oversee Women’s, Home and Retail as the Brand Continues Its Lifestyle Expansion
Anthropologie has promoted Anu Narayanan to global president of women’s, home and retail, expanding her responsibilities across global merchandising and retail stores as the brand continues to strengthen its lifestyle positioning.
Narayanan most recently served as president of women’s and home, a role she assumed in 2023. Prior to that, she was chief merchandising officer of apparel and accessories at Anthropologie, where the company said her leadership helped deliver record highs in sales and customer acquisition.
In her expanded position, Narayanan will continue to report to Anthropologie Group global chief executive officer Tricia Smith.
“Anu’s leadership reflects a rare combination of creative intuition, deep customer understanding, and merchant discipline that continues to drive our business forward,” Smith said in a statement. “I’m incredibly excited for this next chapter for Anu and confident her leadership will continue to elevate Anthropologie globally.”
According to the company, Narayanan has played a central role in accelerating Anthropologie’s strategic growth since joining the retailer. Her leadership has helped expand the brand’s portfolio of owned labels, increase speed to market, and deepen customer engagement while evolving Anthropologie into a broader lifestyle destination spanning fashion, home and experiential retail.
Before joining Anthropologie, Narayanan held senior merchandising and leadership roles across several major retail companies. She served as senior vice president and general merchandise manager of merchandising and design at La Senza and was previously vice president and general manager of women’s at Old Navy. Earlier positions included roles at Avenue Stores, Ann Taylor, Gap Inc. and Talbots.
The promotion comes as parent company Urban Outfitters Inc. continues to post strong momentum across its portfolio. For the fiscal year ended Jan. 31, the group reported net sales rising 11.1 percent to a record $6.17 billion. Within the retail segment, Anthropologie posted a 5.9 percent increase in net sales, while Urban Outfitters rose 7.3 percent and Free People gained 4.8 percent.