Profile: New Look’s incoming chief creative officer, Paula Dumont Lopez

Dumont Lopez will arrive at New Look in September, joining the board and taking over from Roger Wightman who, after 27 years at the retailer, is stepping down to a part-time consulting role.

She comes fresh from heading womenswear at Esprit and is credited with playing a key part in its ongoing recovery.

Beginning her working life as a lawyer, Dumont Lopez made a dramatic jump to retail by joining Inditex as a pattern-cutter in 2003.

From there, her impressive aptitude for product clearly made an impact. She rose quickly rise through the ranks at Inditex’s La Coruña base, becoming a buyer in Zara’s children’s department just one year later.

Another year on and she was promoted to category manager buyer for Zara Basic in Asia before eventually becoming head of product for Zara Basic globally.

For the uninitiated, Zara Basic is not limited to basic clothing such as T-shirts and jeans.

“Its target demographic is much more akin to that of New Look than Zara’s classic Woman label, meaning that Dumont Lopez already has an understanding of what makes that customer group tick”

Rather, it spans all products and retains Zara’s fashion-forward attitude, but uses less high-end materials and consequently looks less luxurious and more casual.

Where Zara Woman might use real silk for a dress designed for an event, Zara Basic will use an approximation for a dress designed for a night out.

The division is an increasingly important part of the Zara business, which demonstrates its impact on high streets around the world.

What is more, its target demographic is much more akin to that of New Look than Zara’s classic Woman label, meaning that Dumont Lopez already has an understanding of what makes that customer group tick.

Move to Esprit

Having honed her skills at Inditex, Dumont Lopez jumped ship to Esprit along with a raft of other senior Inditex figures.

The exodus was prompted by the decision of former distribution and operations director Jose Manuel Martinez Gutierrez to take up the top job at Esprit.

His appointment in 2012 followed the sudden joint resignation of the former chairman and chief executive and prompted Esprit shares to surge 40%.

Five years on from the Spanish takeover and the latest news from Esprit is positive.

The business swung to a profit from a substantial loss in its last half, although revenue dipped as the company focused on reducing operating costs, closed stores, adjusted prices and improved its technological and distribution capabilities.

New Look needs no such dramatic turnaround. Its numbers may have suffered during its most recent year but the business is, at its core, healthy. What’s lacking, according to boss Anders Kristiansen, is trend authority.

If Dumont Lopez’s meteoric rise through Inditex is anything to go by, she’ll make quick work of that.