The chief executive officer of the new Woolworths/Lowe’s home improvement joint venture has just been announced, with the former president of Lowe’s Canada coming on board.
With more than 35 years experience in the hardware sector, Don Stallings will now join the team for the new joint venture, after working for 14 years at Lowe’s in both the USA and Canada.
In addition to this, the new chief operating officer has been announced, with Melinda Smith stepping up to take on the role after working with Woolworths for 22 years.
Smith has had a number of roles across buying, operations and supply chain and most recently was a project leader for Woolworths’ home improvement strategy for the past 18 months.
Woolworths CEO Michael Luscombe commented on the new appointments.
“Don was the clear and natural choice to lead our home improvement business and we are extremely excited to have him on board. He is bringing a wealth of industry experience and insight to the role, as well as a profound understanding of building up a home improvement business in a new territory,” he said.
“Melinda is an outstanding and talented retailer in our business and her skills and expertise in the Australian marketplace will perfectly complement Don’s leadership. Together, they will make a powerful leadership team.”