Thursday, the Committee of Concerned Shareholders of Children's Place Retail Stores, Inc. (PLCE), which owns around 22% of the company's outstanding shares, solicited the shareholders to vote to elect its three independent nominees to the Board of Directors at the 2009 Annual Meeting, scheduled for July 31.
In the letter addressing shareholders, Ezra Dabah, former chief executive officer of Children's Place, requested shareholders to vote Raphael Benaroya, Jeremy Fingerman and Ross Glickman to the Board. Dabah wrote in the letter, "While our nominees do not currently own any shares of the company, they have each committed to purchase shares if elected."
Dabah insisted that he is not trying to gain control of the company and that he has no plans to return as Chairman or CEO.
Dabah, who resigned in 2007 following allegations of violating policies concerning security trades, urged shareholders not be misled by the company's repeated misrepresentation about his exit. He clarified that he stepped down as CEO to facilitate the completion of audits and to avoid further delay in completing the Company's SEC filings.
The ex-CEO also warned the shareholders not to be carried away by the reported sales for 2008. Dabah noted that company's comparable store sales growth for the fourth quarter, the first in which the current management team made merchandising decisions, showed a decline of 5% based on the company's previous reporting-method, compared to positive 5% average comparable store sales growth in the first three quarters of 2008.
PLCE is currently trading at $25.63, down $1.45 or 5.35%, on the NASDAQ.
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