The following is my opinion only.
Shekar Natarajan has been forced out as President of Quiet Platforms, a logistics company purchased by American Eagle Outfitters (AEO) in 2021 for $360M. AEO acquired the company AirTerra also in 2021. The news of Shekar’s departure was reported by Emma Cosgrove of Insider. I’ve communicated with Emma several times.
Frankly, I believe Shekar Natarajan is a fraud who is woefully unqualified for his job.
Quiet Platforms, like all logistics startups, must have a leader that is focused on operations, technology, and customers. Shekar, however, was spending all of his time speaking to the press and speaking at conferences about his vision for logistics. Shekar failed to inform the press that much of what he was talking about came from articles that I wrote about logistics and supply chain management. Shekar also plagiarized content and comments from others to make himself appear to be smart and a visionary — he is neither.
Shekar not only misrepresented his own abilities and experience, he significantly misrepresented the capabilities of Quiet Platforms.
I wrote a post in 2022 where I stated that I had questions and concerns about Quiet Platforms operations, executive team, and customers. Within hours, individuals working for Quiet Platforms and AEO reached out to me. I asked for one thing – “Tell me the facts. What’s really going on? Everything will be kept confidential and off the record.”
According to the sources I spoke with, Quiet Platforms is a “mediocre 3PL” that lacks the systems, automation and technology commonly found at their competitors, A source stated to me, “Excel is all we use to run the company.” Another source stated, “We struggle to complete the work of fulfilling and shipping orders. We need a better system and technology.”
Sources stated that Shekar couldn’t deliver results and that he had “grossly” misrepresented his experience, and greatly exaggerated his accomplishments. Shekar was viewed as being a “clown” and a “braggard” according to the sources who worked with Shekar.
The most critical comments were directed at AEO and their senior executives. Sources stated to me, “AEO’s executive team has bought into a fantasy. What’s being presented as fact is pure fiction. AEO needs to make changes immediately and replace the leaders of Quiet Platforms.” AEO deserves credit because they have now made changes.
I like and admire AEO, but based on my experience and in my opinion, AEO should not have acquired Quiet Logistics or AirTerra to create Quiet Platforms. It was a dumb idea. AEO COO Michael Rempell stated in an internal memo that AEO is going to continue owning Quiet Platforms. That’s a mistake in my opinion. AEO is a retailer, not a logistics company. AEO can have an optimized supply chain and logistics network capable of enabling growth without having to own a logistics company. This is the opinion of most people.
I strongly advise the Board of Directors at AEO – Deb Henretta, Cary McMillan, CPA, David Sable, Sujutha Chandrasekaran, and Janice Page, to recommend that AEO CEO and Chairman Jay Schottenstein, hire an independent firm to assess strategic alternatives for Quiet Platforms, including divesting the company.
I want AEO and Quiet Platforms to succeed. However, I estimate Quiet Platforms will go out of business by 2025 if not sooner.
