Retail Briefs

By Staff -- Home Textiles Today, 2/4/2008 12:00:00 AM

Executive Dominoes at eBay

Checking out of her post as president and ceo of online auction giant eBay Inc. is Meg Whitman and checking in to replace her is John Donahoe, promoted from his post as president of eBay Marketplaces. Whitman's last day on the job will be March 31 – which marks a decade since she joined the company, during which time eBay grew from a U.S.-only, auction-based trading site with $4.7 million in revenue, 500,000 registered users and just 30 employees, to the $7.7 billion operation it is today, with millions of users worldwide and more than 15,000 employees. She will remain on eBay's board of directors.

Donahoe came to eBay in February 2005 from Bain & Company, where he had served as worldwide managing director since 1999. His unit -- eBay Marketplaces – has seen revenues and profits double in three years.

In related news, eBay announced that Rajiv Dutta, currently president of PayPal, has been promoted to evp of eBay Inc. and will also replace Donahoe as president of eBay Marketplaces. Additionally, he has been elected to the eBay board of directors.

Bill Cobb, president of eBay North America, has opted to retire from his post. Replacing him is Lorrie Norrington, currently president of eBay International. She has become president of eBay Marketplaces operations and assumes Cobb's responsibilities. She reports to Dutta.