Bodo Kipper to leave OTTO
Hamburg, 01 March 2024 - Bodo Kipper, previous OTTO Divisional Board Member Retail and Marketplace, has left OTTO at the end of the 2023/24 financial year to take on new challenges outside the Otto Group. The separation takes place following mutual agreement and is due to divergent perspectives on the strategic direction of this single Otto Group company.
Bodo Kipper joined OTTO in 2020. During his tenure, as OTTO Divisional Board Member Retail and Marketplace, he has shaped the successful transformation of the overall otto.de business model from retailer to platform. Since 2020, sales revenues generated via the OTTO marketplace already topped two billion euros.
Bodo Kipper also held responsibility for the entire digitalization and automation process of the company's own retail business as well as the platform partner business, unlocking major efficiency gains. A further core achievement of the proven retail expert over the past four years is the successful, thoroughgoing restructuring of OTTO Category Management.
Dr. Marcus Ackermann, Member of the Otto Group Executive Board, Multichannel Distance Selling, comments: "My sincere thanks go to Bodo Kipper for his very good work and his significant contribution to turning OTTO into a platform. I wish him all the best, both for his professional and personal future."
Bodo Kipper's areas of responsibility will be taken over on an interim basis and in addition to their current responsibilities by Marc Opelt, Chairman of the OTTO Management Board; Katy Roewer, Board Member Service, Human Resources and Finance; and Dr. Michael Müller-Wünsch, Board Member Technology. This arrangement will apply until further notice. The Otto Group Executive Board will decide on a definitive solution in due course.
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Martin Zander
+49 40 6461 2820
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About the Otto Group
Founded in Germany in 1949, today the Otto Group is a globally active retail and services group with around 41,000 employees in 30 major company groups primarily active in the economic regions of Germany, the rest of Europe, and the USA. Its business activities span the Platforms, Brand Concepts, Retailers, Services and Financial Services segments. In the 2022/23 financial year (to 28 February) the Otto Group generated revenues of 16.2 billion euros. With online revenues of approximately 12 billion euros (financial year 2022/23), the Otto Group is one of the world’s largest online retailers. The Group’s particular strength is the broad market presence of its differentiated product assortments and service offers to diverse customer target groups in the world’s relevant economic regions. Numerous strategic partnerships and joint ventures provide the Otto Group with excellent opportunities to transfer know-how and leverage areas of synergy potential. Group companies demonstrate a high degree of corporate responsibility and willingness to collaborate with one another; at the same time this guarantees flexibility, customer proximity and optimal target-group appeal in their respective national markets.