Pat has been an integral part of Birks Group’s senior management team for the past five years and has led the finance function and many successful initiatives that have contributed to the Company’s development.
Ms. Katia Fontana will be joining the Company as Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, starting January 2020 and Mr. Di Lillo will remain with the Company until the end of January to ensure a proper transition.
Ms. Fontana is a Chartered Professional Accountant, CA and has over 25 years experience in finance and accounting, 14 years of which were spent in the retail industry. She was recently Chief Financial Officer at Avenir Global, a holding company for communications and public relations firms. Prior to that she was with Groupe Dynamite Inc., an apparel retailer. From 2004 to 2018 she held various positions within the company including Chief Financial Officer, Vice President, Finance and Administration and Director, Finance and prior thereto she was at Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu, one of the Big 4 public accounting firms, from 1993 to 2004.
Ms. Fontana holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from the University of Québec at Montreal and a Chartered Professional Accountant Designation from l’Ordre des comptables professionnels agréés du Québec.
Niccolò Rossi di Montelera, Executive Chairman of the Board, commented: “Pat has been our CFO since 2015. He has been a valued member of our senior management team and has made significant contributions to the business. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank him for his hard work and dedication and wish him every success in the future.” Mr. Rossi di Montelera continued: “We are very pleased to welcome Katia Fontana to the Company as our new CFO and wish her success in her new role.”
In making the announcement, Jean-Christophe Bédos, President and Chief Executive Officer, commented: “For the past five years, Pat has been an important member of our senior management team. We are grateful for his guidance and leadership during the implementation of the Company’s transformational strategy.” Mr. Bédos continued: “I am very pleased to welcome Katia Fontana to Birks Group. Her experience and knowledge in finance and accounting and her retail experience will be valuable assets for Birks Group as we continue the development of the Birks product brand and the transformation of our stores network in Canada.”
Pat Di Lillo, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, said: “I have been with Birks Group for five years and have immensely enjoyed my time with the Company. However, it is now time to take care of some personal matters and move onto the next stage of my life. I leave the Company at an extremely exciting time in its development. The opportunities that lie ahead for the Company are great as we look to the further development of the Birks brand into an international brand.”
About Birks Group Inc.
Birks Group is a leading designer of fine jewelry, timepieces and gifts and is operator of luxury jewellery stores in Canada. The Company operates 27 stores under the Birks brand in most major metropolitan markets in Canada, one retail location in Calgary under the Brinkhaus brand and two retail locations in Vancouver under the Graff and Patek Philippe brands. Birks was founded in 1879 and has become Canada’s premier retailer and designer of fine jewelry, timepieces and gifts. Additional information can be found on the Company’s web site, www.birks.com.
