Ross Stores on Monday announced the appointment of James Conroy as its next chief executive officer. He will join the company on Dec. 2 and take over the top position on Feb. 2, when current CEO Barbara Rentler will move into an advisory position.
Rentler will continue “to play an important role” in merchandising strategies with the company through March 31, 2027, according to a company press release. She has been with the retailer for nearly 40 years, and has served as CEO since 2014.
The company announced a long-term succession plan last June that originally had Rentler staying on as CEO through January 2026. Ross did not immediately respond to questions as to why Rentler is stepping down from the CEO role a year early.
Conroy was most recently the CEO of Boot Barn and previously served in various leadership roles at Claire's, including COO, president and co-chief executive. When Conroy becomes CEO he will also join Ross’s board of directors. He will serve an initial term through March 2029, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
“Jim is a proven retail executive with a demonstrated record of developing and leading successful retail management teams and creating tremendous value for shareholders,” Ross Executive Chairman Michael Balmuth said in a statement. “We also are confident that Jim’s track record of leveraging customer-centric retail strategies to maximize top- and bottom-line results will help drive our Company’s profitable growth and shareholder value over the near and long term.”
Earlier this fall the discount retailer also switched up its merchandising leadership team, promoting two longtime employees to the chief merchant positions at its Ross and DD’s Discounts banners.
The company, which has been rapidly expanding its brick-and-mortar presence, reported that net sales rose over 7% in Q2 to $5.3 billion, with comps increasing 4% in its most recent quarter.
