CEO Jim O'Donnell named Pilot president of the "new retail concept," saying Pilot will lead the company's development and launch of the "new brand." From 1989 to 2002, Pilot held various top posts at Gap, where he led that company's international expansion and rose to president. Since 2003, he served as president of factory stores and retail concept development at Polo Ralph Lauren. At AE he will report directly to O'Donnell.

Chuck Chubein, also a Gap alum, has been named SVP and COO of the new concept, reporting to Pilot. In addition to his earlier stint at Gap, Chubein has held finance and operating posts at Limited Inc. and, most recently, as director of operations and real estate at Sugartown Worldwide Inc., parent of Lilly Pulitzer. At AE, Chubein will be responsible for operating functions, including real estate, merchandise planning and allocation, finance, information technology, and logistics.

Another new hire with Gap experience, James Olsson, joins the new concept team as VP and general merchandise manager of men's, and will also report to Pilot. He spent nine years with Gap until 2000, primarily on the growth and development of Old Navy's men's division during its first five years of operation. Following that he was divisional VP at Coach for two years and most recently CEO of Ripcurl Inc.

This trio of executives joins Michele and Charles Martin, a previously announced design team, and Roger Markfield, AE's vice chairman and chief merchandising officer. O'Donnell credits Markfield with "ongoing leadership and vision in the creative and merchandising areas." It was Markfield, who, during AE's third-quarter conference call, gave a scant glimpse of the new concept.

At that time, the concept was scheduled to launch in spring 2006. During today's announcement of the new hires, however, O'Donnell referred to a fall 2006 launch.

Markfield's conference call revelations were less than revealing, however, calling the concept "something that's not out there. I think it's something for the 21st Century in the same way I felt about Gap in the 1970s and 1980s, and the same way I felt about American Eagle in the 1990s," he added. Not surprisingly, he also said, "I think this is very special and very big."

American Eagle Outfitters currently operates 777 stores in 49 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico; 69 units in Canada, and it also sells over the Internet. It designs, markets and sells its own brand of casual apparel, targeted to 15- to 25-year-olds, with a dominant focus on basics, such as jeans and cargo pants.