Rent the Runway has announced a major leadership change: Co Founder Jennifer Hyman is stepping down as CEO, President and Board member on May 15, 2026, and longtime board member and retail veteran Teri Bariquit has been appointed Interim CEO and President, as the company doubles down on AI, marketplace, media and B2B growth while reaffirming its 2026 guidance.
Jennifer Hyman’s 18 Year Run As Founder CEO
Co founding Rent the Runway in 2009, Jennifer Hyman set out to disrupt the trillion dollar fashion industry by pioneering clothing rental at scale and normalizing secondhand fashion. Under her leadership, the company launched the now famous “Closet in the Cloud” model, served millions of women, forged deep relationships with leading designers, and in 2021 joined a small group of woman founded companies to go public.
In the transition announcement, Hyman said that building Rent the Runway has been “one of the greatest privileges” of her life, noting that what mattered most was the people, partners and customers who helped build it and emphasizing that the business is “stronger today than it has ever been.” She framed her decision to step down now as making room for the next chapter, while she stays on as an advisor through January 2027 to ensure a smooth handover.
Teri Bariquit Steps In As Interim CEO
Stepping into the role of Interim CEO and President is Teri Bariquit, a 37 year retail veteran and current Rent the Runway board member who previously served as Chief Merchandising Officer at Nordstrom. At Nordstrom, Bariquit oversaw more than 1,200 professionals across buying, planning, product development and inventory management, giving her deep operational and merchandising expertise in omnichannel retail.
In her first statement as Interim CEO, Bariquit said that Rent the Runway is in its “strongest financial position in years,” pointing to momentum across the company’s online marketplace, advertising and media platform, and B2B services. She emphasized a focus on executing the existing roadmap and scaling a “robust, multi faceted platform” to define the next era of fashion discovery and “create new ways to power women to feel their best every day.”
Board Backs Strategy And Transition
Executive Chairman Dhiren Fonseca said the Board thanks Hyman for guiding Rent the Runway’s evolution “from a disruptive startup into a category defining fashion technology platform,” highlighting the company’s use of proprietary data, AI driven technology, scaled logistics and a highly engaged customer base. He added that the Board is “privileged” to have a leader with Bariquit’s operational depth to steer the business while it conducts a thorough search for a permanent CEO.
Board member Damian Giangiacomo, Managing Partner at Nexus Capital Management, said the Board has “tremendous confidence” in Rent the Runway’s brand, loyal customer base and strong demand for rental, pointing to expanded product offerings in categories like handbags and jewelry and growing AI investments as key growth levers. Another director, Peter Comisar, Founder and Managing Partner of STORY3 Capital Partners, said the company sees “significant tailwinds” from “re dressing” demand, sizing flexibility and the expansion of rental as a service, and believes RTR is well positioned to scale its platform and drive long term value.
Doubling Down On AI, Marketplace, Media And B2B
The leadership news comes as Rent the Runway leans into a diversification strategy built around AI and new revenue streams beyond its core subscription rental model. In its April 14, 2026 earnings release, the company laid out plans to transform discovery from a traditional ecommerce grid into an AI powered experience, including browsing by outfit groupings, improved conversational search, and richer product detail pages that show garments in motion and in a customer’s size.
Alongside AI, Rent the Runway is piloting an online marketplace, expanding B2B dry cleaning and services, and growing its advertising and media program, which includes the “Muse” content engine that surpassed 13 million impressions in Q4 2025 and 20 million impressions across February and March 2026 alone. These initiatives are designed to diversify monetization, deepen engagement with both customers and brand partners, and make the platform less dependent on a single revenue stream.
Financial Outlook Reaffirmed For 2026
Despite the CEO transition, Rent the Runway reaffirmed the full year 2026 financial guidance it issued on April 14, 2026. That outlook calls for double digit revenue growth versus 2025, driven primarily by continued improvements in product and inventory experience, while forecasting Adjusted EBITDA margins in the 4–7 percent range compared with 7.5 percent in fiscal 2025.
The company also highlighted strong momentum in subscription add ons, with Q4 2025 add on revenue up 67 percent year over year, and said it plans to expand membership flexibility and cross sell in 2026 to increase revenue per subscriber. CFO Sid Thacker said FY25 was a “pivotal year” that significantly strengthened both the balance sheet and customer experience, and reiterated the company’s focus on using AI and new revenue streams to “build a durable, multi faceted platform that defines the future of fashion.”
