Men's Wearhouse: Why Zimmer Had to Be Fired

He thought he was the boss, despite his reduced role
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jun 25, 2013 6:49 PM CDT
Men's Wearhouse: Why Zimmer Had to Be Fired
A 1999 photo of George Zimmer, second from left.   (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File)

Men's Wearhouse finally opened up about its surprise decision to fire founder and pitchman George Zimmer today, saying that Zimmer thought he could call the shots even with just a 3.6% stake in the company. One of the main points of contention is that Zimmer wanted to sell the company to a group of private investors, but the board thought the move would be too risky, at least for the time being, reports CNNMoney.

"Mr. Zimmer had difficulty accepting the fact that Men's Wearhouse is a public company with an independent board of directors and that he has not been the chief executive officer for two years," said the board's statement. It also said Zimmer wouldn't support CEO Doug Ewert and other execs "unless they acquiesced to his demands." Zimmer didn't respond publicly today, but his defenders are expressing their displeasure on the company's Facebook page, reports AP. Meantime, the company's stock rose more than 5% today. (More Men's Wearhouse stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X