GameStop (GME 1.03%) continues to pack the C-suite with former Amazon (AMZN +0.49%) executives as it builds out a path to become the "Amazon of gaming," this time adding Matt Furlong as its new CEO and Mike Recupero as CFO.
That brings to five the number of executives the video game retailer has poached from the e-commerce behemoth. Previously it added Jenna Owens as chief operating officer, Matt Francis as chief technology officer (a new position for GameStop), and Elliott Wilke as chief growth officer.
Chewy co-founder Ryan Cohen, who has led the massive overhaul of the video game company, is overseeing e-commerce and was formally appointed chairman of the board of directors on Wednesday.
Image source: Getty Images.
The strategy is to convert GameStop from being primarily a bricks-and-mortar retailer into a digital video game marketplace.
Last year, Cohen -- through his RC Ventures private equity firm, which owns 13% of the video game retailer's stock -- called on GameStop to sell off its underperforming stores, keep only those that were profitable, and begin the transformation to meet the new reality of gaming's move toward digital and downloads. He said GameStop needed to become the Amazon of gaming.
Many executives also began bailing on the company, followed by directors who said they would not stand for reelection. Cohen took on a more active role in the company.
While all this was occurring, GameStop became a cause celebre for the WallStreetBets subreddit crowded, who banded together to drive the retailer's stock higher in a bid to thwart hedge funds that had heavily shorted the stock. At one point, the stock soared some 1,800%, and at over $300 per share today, it is 6,000% above where it was one year ago.
