Reggie Fils-Aime leaving GameStop board

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It has been revealed that several members of the board of directors for GameStop will be leaving, including Reggie Fils-Aime, a legend and veteran of the industry from Nintendo.

This news comes off the back of an SEC filing which shows that the company is expecting eight incumbent directors to retire from the board at the GameStop Annual Meeting for 2021. The meeting is said to be taking place on or around June 10, 2021.

The most notable director who will be departing the board is Reggie Fils-Aime. The former President of Nintendo of America is a true legend of the game industry and beloved by many. His departure won’t be seen as a great sign for the company’s future, though that is probably completely unrelated.

In addition to Reggie Fils-Aime, Walmart US’s former CEO William Simon, and CEO and President of PetSmart James Symancykz will be departing the company as well. Once again, each one is a giant in their field, and their departure won’t go unnoticed.

All three of these directors joined GameStop in March 2020. This was ahead of the second wave of new directors joining up with the company in June 2020. GameStop’s filing shows that the company has not identified a definitive slate of nominees for the election that will follow, with the elected candidates replacing these departing directors.

An official statement from GameStop acknowledges the turmoil and potential side-effects on the company’s operations that may come as a result of the turnover in directors. It will also impact strategic focus and the ability to drive stockholder value. It also states that if new directors aren’t found, then the future operations of the company could suffer as a result. Naturally, the company is doing all it can to find suitable candidates.

This news follows the fourth quarter and full-year financial results for the company in 2020. Despite the fourth quarter being a profitable one thanks to the launch of a new generation of consoles, full-year sales were down by 21 percent at $5.09 billion. As a result, the company posted a net loss of $215.3 million for the year.