Walgreens named Mike Motz chief executive officer after Sycamore Partners completed a roughly $10 billion acquisition and took the company private. Motz previously led Staples' U.S. retail business and served as president of Canadian pharmacy chain Shoppers Drug Mart. The company will shift its focus back to core retail and pharmacy operations to confront competition and slow diversification into broader healthcare services. Walgreens struggled to expand beyond its pharmacy business as budget-conscious consumers turned to lower-cost options from Amazon and Walmart for prescriptions and toiletries. Tim Wentworth, who led 2023 cost cuts including removal of mid-level executives and store closures, will remain a director. John Lederer was appointed executive chairman; he is a former director of Walgreens Boots Alliance and a senior adviser to Sycamore.
Walgreens on Thursday named retail veteran Mike Motz as its chief executive officer after the U.S. pharmacy chain was taken private by Sycamore Partners, marking a fresh chapter for the company that has been struggling to keep pace with rivals. The management shake-up came on the heels of Sycamore's roughly $10 billion acquisition of Walgreens Boots Alliance, completed earlier in the day.
Motz, previously the CEO of office supplies chain Staples' U.S. retail business, will succeed Tim Wentworth and steer the ailing pharmacy operator as it shifts its focus back on core retail and pharmacy operations. He had also worked as the president of Canadian pharmacy chain Shoppers Drug Mart. Walgreens has struggled to expand beyond its pharmacy business and diversify into broader healthcare services, even as budget-conscious consumers increasingly turned to lower-cost options from Amazon to Walmart for their prescriptions and toiletries.
Wentworth, who took the helm in 2023, spearheaded a turnaround at the company through cost cuts, including the removal of multiple mid-level executives and store closures. Wentworth will continue to serve as a director, Walgreens said. The company also appointed John Lederer, a former director of Walgreens Boots Alliance and a senior adviser to Sycamore, as executive chairman.
Collection
[
|
...
]