Seattle-based online travel company Expedia Group Inc. (Nasdaq: EXPE) has named longtime Williams-Sonoma Inc. executive Julie Whalen as the company's new chief financial officer and executive vice president.
Whalen will take over the CFO role at Expedia Sept. 26. She spent the past 21 years at San Francisco-based Williams-Sonoma, according to Expedia, including the past 10 years as CFO at the cookware and home goods retail company.
“Julie is a highly respected financial executive with years of success as an operating leader," Peter Kern, CEO of Expedia, said in a release. "We are excited to bring Julie’s energy and drive to our leadership team and look forward to the impact she can bring to our finance organization and across our entire enterprise.”
Whalen has been on Expedia's board since 2019, and the company said she will remain on the board. According to Expedia, she will oversee the company's accounting, financial reporting and internal auditing, among other responsibilities.
Whalen is replacing Eric Hart, who has spent the past 13 years with Expedia. He has been the company's CFO for about three years, according to Expedia. The company said in a release Hart is leaving for "new opportunities" but will stay with the company through the start of October to help with the transition. Hart will continue as chair of the supervisory board of directors at Expedia's hotel search subsidiary Trivago and on the board for Expedia's global business travel group.
Expedia, which has brands like Vrbo and Orbitz, has been making an effort to declutter its operations, including a rebrand and simplified customer experience. Last year, the company announced a new corporate structure with four departments: Expedia Services, Expedia Brands, Expedia Marketplace and Expedia for Business.
In its second quarter 2022 financial results, released in early August, Expedia reported $3.2 billion in revenue, up 51% year over year but up just 1% compared with the second quarter of 2019, prior to the pandemic.
"I have developed a great a deal of respect and admiration for Expedia Group’s business and leadership team over the past three years through my board position. I am excited to join Expedia at such a pivotal time and to help deliver on the company’s growth strategies to maximize shareholder value,” Whalen said in a release.
