Dive Brief:

• Christine Chambers, the CFO of RealNetworks, will take on the role of CFO for online pet pharmacy service PetMed Express effective Aug. 3, according to a July 14 filing by the company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. She formerly held top financial jobs at the software company Rosetta Stone and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
• Chambers will replace CFO Bruce Rosenbloom, who has served in the position since May 2001 and will continue to serve in the role until Aug. 3. The company has proposed a continuation of Rosenbloom's employment for the remainder of the year after his August exit from the CFO post, according to the SEC filing. The company is also in talks with Rosenbloom about his transition and separation agreement
• “Our new leadership team has both digital transformation and scale experience, and the Board and I are thrilled to welcome Christine to the company,” said CEO and President Mathew Hulett in a company press release. “She is a seasoned finance professional with extensive experience in digital transformation in public and private companies.” He added: “I know first-hand that she has the turnaround chops and experience to help PetMeds into its next phase of growth.”

Dive Insight:

Chambers most recently served as CFO for software development firm RealNetworks, which provides a suite of artificial intelligence and machine-learning enabled products to its clients.

She also served as VP of financial planning and analysis for language learning software company Rosetta Stone for a nearly two-year period beginning June 2018. The company was acquired by educational technology firm Cambium Learning Group in August 2020 in a deal valued at $792 million, according to an August 2020 report by The Street. Chambers served as VP of finance for Cambium for seven months prior to shifting to her CFO role at RealNetworks, according to the social media site LinkedIn.

She also previously served as deputy director for budget and planning for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation between 2013 and 2015.

Compensation for Chambers will include an annual salary of $375,000 and an annual equity award for fiscal year 2023 consisting of 13,000 restricted shares and 3,000 performance restricted shares, according to the filing.

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation alum is taking the financial helm at a shaky time for the company, which was one of the first brands to pioneer online pet prescriptions when it was founded 26 years ago. Following a bump in sales driven by the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, sales have since slowed for the brand, causing its leadership position to “slip,” according to comments made by Hulett during PetMed’s 2021 fourth-quarter earnings call May 9.

Net sales for the company’s fiscal fourth-quarter ending March 31 declined 7.9% to $66 million, from $71.7 million for year-earlier quarter, according to a PetMed press release. The company's net income for the quarter also slid, dropping 11% to $6.1 million, from $6.8 million for the year-earlier period.

For the full fiscal year, PetMed’s net sales decreased 11.6% to $273.4 million as net income fell 31% to $21.1 million compared to the prior fiscal year.

The company is set to report its first quarter financial results on July 25.

Chambers did not immediately respond to requests for comment. PetMed Express did not immediately respond to questions regarding the role it has in mind for Rosenbloom for the remainder of the year.