francesca’s® Exploring Strategic Alternatives and Announces Leadership Change

HOUSTON, Jan. 31, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Francesca’s Holdings Corporation (Nasdaq: FRAN) today announced that it is exploring strategic alternatives and a change to senior management.

On January 31, 2019, Francesca’s Holding Corp. (the “Company”) announced that its Board of Directors has initiated a review of its strategic and financial alternatives to maximize value, including a potential sale of the Company, a financing or a refinancing. The Company has engaged Rothschild & Co and other advisors to assist in the process.

There can be no assurance that the exploration of strategic and financial alternatives will result in any transaction or other result that enhances value. The Company has not set a timetable for completion of the process, and it does not intend to comment further regarding the process unless a specific transaction or other alternative is approved by the Board of Directors, the process is concluded, or it is otherwise determined that further disclosure is appropriate or required by law.

The Company also announced that it expects that Michael Prendergast will be appointed as interim Chief Executive Officer subject to the finalization of an agreement with Alvarez & Marsal.  Mr. Prendergast will replace Steve Lawrence who has resigned from the Company to pursue other opportunities, effective February 1, 2019. 

Mr. Prendergast is a Senior Director in Alvarez & Marsal’s Private Equity Performance Improvement Retail practice. He brings over 20 years of leadership experience from the fashion and consumer products industries. 

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release are "forward-looking statements" made pursuant to the safe-harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Such forward-looking statements reflect our current expectations or beliefs concerning future events and are subject to various risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those that we expected. These risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following: the risk that our exploration of strategic or financial alternatives may not result in any transaction or alternative that enhances value, the risk that we may not be able to successfully integrate a new Chief Executive Officer and Mr. Prendergast is not appointed as interim Chief Executive Officer, the risk that we cannot anticipate, identify and respond quickly to changing fashion trends and customer preferences or changes in consumer environment, including changing expectations of service and experience in boutiques and online, and evolve our business model; our ability to attract a sufficient number of customers to our boutiques or sell sufficient quantities of our merchandise through our ecommerce website; our ability to successfully open, refresh, operate and close boutiques each year, as necessary, to ensure an appropriate brick and mortar footprint; our ability to efficiently source, distribute additional merchandise quantities necessary to support our growth; and the impact of potential tariff increases or new tariffs. For additional information regarding these and other risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in our forward-looking statements, please refer to "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended February 3, 2018 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) on March 28, 2018 and any risk factors contained in subsequent quarterly and annual reports we file with the SEC. We undertake no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement.

About Francesca's Holdings Corporation

francesca's® is a growing specialty retailer which operates a nationwide-chain of boutiques providing customers a unique, fun and personalized shopping experience. The merchandise assortment is a diverse and balanced mix of apparel, jewelry, accessories and gifts. Today francesca's® operates approximately 738 boutiques in 47 states and the District of Columbia and also serves its customers through francescas.com. For additional information on francesca's®, please visit