Lowe’s Companies, Inc. on Tuesday announced current J.C. Penney Co.’s Chief Executive Officer Marvin Ellison as its new CEO.
The leadership shakeup comes after J.C. Penney last week reported a 4.3 percent decrease in net sales to $2.58 billion for the quarter that ended on May 5. Lowe’s recently posted a 1.8 percent decrease in net sales for its quarter that ended on Feb. 2. Net earnings for the home improvement chain were down 16.4 percent in the same period.
Lowe’s cited Ellison’s work to turn around a sales slump at J.C. Penney. Net sales for the department store chain in the first quarter of the year have steadily decreased since 2016 and total net sales for fiscal year 2017 were down 0.3 percent to $12.5 billion.
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“Marvin is an experienced retail CEO with extensive expertise in a complex omni-channel consumer-facing company. He also brings significant experience in the home improvement industry, with a proven track record of global operational excellence and driving results from both DIY and Pro customers,” Marshall Larsen, lead director of Lowe’s board, said in a statement.
Ellison will start with the Mooresville, N.C.-based company on July 2.
J.C. Penney said it would launch a search committee for its new CEO. In the meantime, the Plano, Texas-based company announced the creation of an executive office comprised of the chief financial, customer, information and digital officers.
“During [Ellison’s] tenure, the Company retired $1.4 billion in debt, renewed and enhanced its revolving credit facility and has significantly strengthened the Company’s financial position,” said incoming chairman of the board Ronald Tysoe. “He assembled a strong leadership team that will continue to serve the Company in an elevated capacity to ensure the entire organization remains focused on our customer and improving results.”
J.C. Penney’s stock was down 9.2 percent in premarket trading to $2.28. Lowe’s stock was up 3.16 percent to $2.76.
