As Barnes & Noble weighs what to do with its Nook business, the company has hired a former Cablevision executive to be its new chief financial officer. Michael Huseby, most recently executive v-p and CFO of Cablevision, will join B&N March 13, succeeding Joe Lombardi who resigned last fall. According to B&N, Huseby will be responsible for aligning the company’s finance and business strategies, optimizing the company’s capital structure and helping to scale the rapidly growing digital business.
Said William Lynch, B&N CEO about Huseby: “Mike is a seasoned public company CFO and executive, has consistently built value at the companies he’s served, and recognizes the big opportunities in our strong retail and rapid growth digital businesses.” B&N noted that Huseby played a key role in Cablevision’s growth including the successful spin offs of two Cablevision subsidiary businesses. Prior to joining Cablevision, Huseby served as executive v-p and CFO of Charter Communications.
Separately, the Wall Street Journal reported that B&N is expanding the number of stores that have Penguin boutiques. After testing the boutiques in 10 stores, B&N will roll them out to 25 more outlets. B&N said it does not expect to open Penguin boutiques in all its stores. The 200 sq. ft. space features a range of Penguin merchandise; Penguin began selling items such as tote bags and mugs last year. Penguin Group USA CEO David Shanks told PW last month the company was eager to help keep bookstores from straying too far from selling book-related products and cited Penguin merchandise as a complementary sideline.
