HSN Appoints Mitchell Hara Senior Vice President Of Corporate Strategy

HSN Monday named Mitchell Hara senior vice president of corporate strategy, a newly created position, effective immediately.

He will report directly to HSN chief financial officer Judy Schmeling.

In his new position, Hara will assist with the overall corporate strategy, identifying and developing new strategic initiatives and leading the strategic planning process for HSN. He will also evaluate and oversee potential strategic partnerships and transactions.

“Mitch’s 20 years of investment banking and capital markets experience, as well as his deep knowledge of the retail sector make him a great addition to our team,” Schmeling said in a canned statement. “We look forward to working with him to maximize HSNi’s growth opportunities.”

Hara has experience in the retail and e-commerce sectors and a strong expertise in M&A, leveraged finance and equity capital markets. Prior to joining HSN, Hara was a managing director of mergers and acquisitions at Peter J. Solomon Company. Previously, he led the Specialty Retail Practice at Citigroup Global Markets.

In addition, he has held similar positions at Merrill Lynch & Co., Wasserstein Perella & Co. and Citibank, N.A.

Hara holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Finance from Syracuse University and a Masters in Business Administration from the Harvard Graduate School of Business.

HSN Customers, We’re Not Alone: E-Mail Security Breach May Be One Of Nation’s Biggest

Fellow HSN customers, we weren’t the only ones to have our e-mail security breached.

Both The Wall Street Journal’s “Smart Money” blog and The New York Post has stories about how hackers got into the databases of online marketer Epsilon, which counts HSN as one of its many custormers.

The story in the Post’s business section Monday was headlined “Massive e-breach targets consumers,” on the mess with Epsilon.

The story says the situation “could be one of the biggest such breaches in U.S. history,” adding that hackers got into Epsilon’s databases. The hackers got the names and e-mails of customers of not only HSN but Walgreen, Best Buy and Citigroup, among others.

Authorities are probing the breach, as is Epsilon, according to the Post.

The Smart Money piece said that we don’t have to worry about our financial data being compromised, but to beware of suspicious e-mails.

HSN Just Warned Us That An ‘Unauthorized’ Someone Now Has Our Name And E-Mail

We just got this e-mail from HSN, which warns us that someone got access to our name and e-mail through the home shopping network’s e-mail provider.

They did not get access to financial info, but HSN advises us to be extra, extra careful about opening any suspicious e-mails, etc.

We don’t know how many other HSN customers got this warning, but we are not very happy campers. HSN says it takes our privacy very seriously, but if that is so, how did this happen?

Thanks for ruining our Sunday, HSN and customer service dude Gregg

Here it is:

Dear HSN Customer,

HSN values your trust and wants to make you aware of a recent incident. We learned from our email provider, Epsilon, that limited information about you was accessed by an unauthorized individual or individuals. This information included your name and email address and did not include any financial or other sensitive information. We felt it was important to notify you of this incident as soon as possible. We apologize for any inconvenience and have outlined below a number of email safeguards to help ensure your privacy online.

Email scams, spam, and other attacks on email systems are on the rise, but, by taking certain precautions when receiving emails, you can continue to safely use email for your business and personal needs:

Don’t open links or attachments from people you don’t know and trust.

Don’t provide personal, financial, or other sensitive information when asked to do so by email. Most reputable companies do not ask for such information by email, and, rest assured, we will not do so.

If you receive an email appearing to come from us that does ask you for sensitive information, do not respond, click on any links, or download any attachments. Instead, please inform us immediately at the toll-free number or email address provided below.

We take your privacy very seriously and work diligently to protect your information, whether held by us or by our service providers. HSN’s internal databases, which store all customer-provided data, were in no way compromised. Our email provider has taken significant steps to further protect the limited customer information held in its databases. If you have any questions or concerns regarding this incident, please contact us toll free at 1-800-933-2887 or email us at customerservice@hsn.com.

Sincerely,
Gregg Stallwood
Senior Vice President, Customer Care – HSN

Before ‘Jersey Shore’ There Was Self-Tanning Addict Toni Brattin, Another HSN Vet Who Has Landed At ShopNBC

We went to ShopNBC.com at midnight to check out what its Today’s Top Value is, and lo and behold, we found another HSN refugee.

Brassy blond Toni Brattin — no not the singer — who had been a staple at HSN for years is now on ShopNBC. She has the No. 3 home shopping channel’s top value, the Tan Fabulous One-Minute Self Tanner Three-Piece Set, for $20.

There was Brattin demonstrating her new self-tanner, with a model standing in a shower that ShopNBC had set up on its sound stage.

Toni Brattin, another HSN alum, had landed at ShopNBC

Brattin used to sell a variety of products on HSN, from a self-tanner to wigs and hairpieces. She was into self-tanning long before folks like “The Jersey Shore” and “Jerseylicious” gangs. Her old self-tanner took several hours to work. This one takes a minute, as she demonstrated.

We suspect that Brattin’s exit was part of HSN CEO Mindy Grossman effort to make the No. 2 home shopping network more upscale and less infomercial-like. That has led to an exodus of longtime HSN vendors, including Suzanne Somers. She is now at ShopNBC, too.

Here is what ShopNBC’s website has to say about Brattin:

Beloved for her infectious energy and solution-driven products, Toni Brattin has been involved in the beauty business for over 25 years. Her beauty career started with a self tanning concept she created, and she continues to innovate in order to bring you the newest solutions. Her passion for helping women feel and look their best shows through in all her products.

Her set includes the Tan Fabulous One Minute Tanning Boost foam, a loofah on a wand and two pairs of powder-free vinyl application gloves.

Every time we hear the word “loofah,” we think about the young woman who made allegations about Fox News’s Bill O’Reilly, and what he wanted to do with her and a loofah. But we digress.

Here is how Brattin’s new product works:

Best if used in the shower or tub. Use the application gloves to avoid tan palms. Avoid eye area. After bathing, apply Tan Fabulous to damp skin. Work evenly from top to bottom of your arms, legs and body. Apply generously for a dark tan or moderately for a light tan. Apply evenly to avoid streaking. Once tanning foam is applied, no need to wait. Just turn on the shower or tub, and rinse clean. Blot dry.