110 employees laid off from Regis; top management to depart

Edina-based Regis Corp., which runs thousands of hair salons such as Supercuts and MasterCuts, announced today it has laid off 110 employees at its corporate headquarters.

The struggling retailer reported a $57 million net loss for the final three months of 2011. Sales also slipped by 2 percent to $563 million, as Regis made less money from salon services and product sales.

Randy Pearce had been in line to take over as CEO next month, taking over from outgoing CEO Paul Finkelstein. Pearce now plans to retire in June. In a conference call with analysts, Pearce said he can't give the CEO job the five-to-ten-year commitment it demands.

"The employees and customers of Regis deserve that level of continuity and stability, and quite frankly at this point in my career, I'm not able to make that type of long-term commitment," Pearce said. "I'm 57 years old. I've spent 27 wonderful years here at Regis and I'm ready to transition to the next phase of my life."

Pearce indicated he will stay until a new corporate leader is found for the struggling company.

"I fully intend to continue leading the business transformation at Regis," Pearce said. "And I've informed the board that I am willing to assist in any way possible with a smooth transition to the new CEO."

A company spokeswoman said Pearce was not pushed aside by board members unhappy with Regis' performance. Regis' earnings in the final three months of last year topped Wall Street's expectations.