Gilt Loses a Second Exec in Two Weeks, This Time to Target

Gilt Groupe executive Jason Goldberger is leaving the company to head up Target’s online and mobile efforts, marking the second high-level departure from the New York-based online luxury retailer in two weeks.

Goldberger will become senior vice president of Target.com and Mobile, and will run all aspects of the retailer’s e-commerce business, including user experience, merchandising and analytics. He starts Feb. 11.

Last week, TechCrunch reported that Andy Page, Gilt’s president, was leaving Gilt. A spokeswoman confirmed that Page was ending his cross-country commute from San Francisco, which he’d been making weekly for the past three years.

The two departures cap a tumultuous year for Gilt, which has restructured its business several times in preparation for an initial public offering. Late last year, Gilt’s co-founder, Kevin Ryan, was replaced by Michelle Peluso, a Citigroup executive and member of Gilt’s board.

Gilt is dealing with the repercussions of its quick expansion into multiple verticals, and has not found a path to profitability in some of the niches. Some of the recent product cutbacks have included groceries and full-priced men’s clothing. It is also currently trying to sell Jetsetter, its travel division.

Gilt does not plan to fill the two new vacancies immediately. Peluso starts as CEO at the end of February, so she’ll be figuring out the right direction for the company, the spokeswoman added.

Goldberger was most recently executive vice president at Gilt, in charge of Home, Taste, Baby & Kids, and Business Development. And while Target will represent a much more corporate environment than Gilt’s startup culture, Goldberger will still face a number of challenges.

In 2011, Target’s online president left the company after the retailer’s website crashed from overwhelming demand for new designer apparel. The management change occurred soon after Target took control of its e-commerce site from Amazon.com. Since then, it has been competing fiercely with the e-commerce giant.

Earlier this month, Target announced plans to match prices from the top online retailers year-round, including Amazon.com, Walmart.com, BestBuy.com and Toysrus.com. It also said that its Target stores will match prices found at Target.com.