Kenneth Cole names vice chairman as CEO

NEW YORK — Clothing and footwear maker Kenneth Cole Productions Inc. on Friday named Paul Blum, who has a long history with the company, as its new CEO.

Blum was hired in March as vice chairman. Before that he was CEO of jewelry company David Yurman Inc. But he spent 15 years at Kenneth Cole prior to that. He joined as an executive vice president and became president and COO in 1994.

Kenneth Cole had been serving as interim CEO since Jill Granoff was ousted in February. He remains chairman and chief creative officer.

"With his deep knowledge of our brands and businesses, we are excited to restart this partnership and benefit from his broad range of experience," Cole said of Blum.

Kenneth Cole has been cutting costs and streamlining its business in an effort to improve results.

The New York-based company reported a first-quarter loss of $17 million, hurt by one-time charges related to its efforts to pare down, including closing struggling stores, laying off employees and offering big discounts to lure customers and clear out inventory.

But its revenue rose 7 percent to $117 million on strength in men's shoes and sportswear.