The VIP Art Fair, an online-only art fair launched last year, has hired Internet retail specialist Lisa Kennedy as its first chief executive officer. Kennedy, previously executive vice president of online retailer Quidsi Inc., will bring needed tech expertise to the initiative, which was plagued by technical difficulties during its initial outing. As Kennedy enters, another VIP executive will exit: the fair's founding director, "Art of the Deal" author Noah Horowitz, is leaving his post. A replacement has yet to be determined.

According to Jane Cohan, who founded the fair alongside her husband, dealer James Cohan, and Internet entrepreneurs Jonas and Alessandra Almgren, the appointment was made "with an eye towards growth." "The founders are all involved in other businesses as well as this, so bringing one person in to oversee strategy, take care of operations, and tie it all together with the technology arm is really important," she told ARTINFO. In addition to streamlining and improving the web product, Kennedy will work to expand the fair to take place multiple times a year.

Kennedy has no previous art experience, but substantial online success: the company she worked for, Quidsi Inc., was recently sold to Amazon for half a billion dollars. (It bears mentioning that the two sites that comprise Quidsi's e-commerce portfolio — online baby care specialist Diapers.com and Soap.com, a kind of online drugstore — deal in goods considerably less expensive than fine art.) "She has a tremendous record for building consumer-driven companies," said Cohan. "She's a supertalent."   

A representative for VIP said the fair will appoint a new director "as soon as possible," but wanted to wait until Kennedy began her new post on November 10 so she could be involved in the decision. Cohan noted that the company would seek a director with considerable experience in the art industry, but declined to disclose where Horowitz is headed. (Horowitz himself did not immediately return a request for comment.)

VIP is facing fresh competition from another e-commerce art initiative, Paddle8, which recently ventured into world of art fairs by partnering with the NADA art fair in Miami. Paddle8 will preview the work going on view at the brick-and-mortar fair before it opens and continue showing it a week after the fair closes, during which time it will be available for purchase by Paddle8 members. 

VIP2.0, the fair's second edition, is scheduled to take place from February 3 to February 8. Galleries including Luhring Augustine, Marianne Boesky, Marian Goodman, and David Zwirner have already signed on.