Foot Locker Announces New CEO

mike lewis

• June 26 2009
• 350 views
• add a comment

Foot Locker, which has recently been increasing its forays into action sports with CCS brick and mortar locations and statements that it would like to go deeper in the skate market, announced yesterday that Ken C. Hicks will become its new President and CEO.

Hicks has been President and Chief Merchandising Officer of J.C. Penney Company, Inc. since 2005, a position he held when the company recently announced that on July 11 it will be stocking 600 of its stores with brands birthed from the action sports industry - RS by Ryan Sheckler, skate-inspired clothing from Wicked Fashion; Third Rail, a Zoo York Production, and Rusty will all hit the shelves just in time for back-to-school shoppers.

Here are details from the press release:

Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL - News), the New York-based specialty athletic retailer, today announced that its Board of Directors has elected Ken C. Hicks to become its President and Chief Executive Officer, effective August 17, 2009. Mr. Hicks was also elected a member of Foot Locker’s Board of Directors as of that date.

Mr. Hicks will succeed Matthew D. Serra, who has been Foot Locker, Inc.’s Chief Executive Officer since March 2001 and Chairman of the Board since February 2004. Mr. Serra, age 64, will continue as Foot Locker’s Chairman of the Board until his planned retirement at the end of the Company’s current fiscal year, January 30, 2010. He will also retire from the Board of Directors on that date.

Mr. Serra stated “I am very pleased that Foot Locker has been able to recruit a seasoned retail executive of Ken’s stature and experience to become the next Chief Executive Officer. I look forward to working with him in the coming months to help ensure a smooth and effective transition.”

Mr. Hicks stated “It is rare that an opportunity to lead an international specialty retailer like Foot Locker, Inc. arises. I am very pleased to be joining Foot Locker, and I look forward to working with Matt, the Board of Directors, and the management team to continue and improve the Company’s record of success.”

James E. Preston, Foot Locker’s lead director, stated “The Board of Directors is very pleased that Ken Hicks will be joining the Company. His many years of experience with several high quality retail companies will serve him well as he leads Foot Locker. The Board also expresses its appreciation to Matt Serra for his work at Foot Locker over the past almost 11 years, eight of them as Chief Executive Officer. Matt set a high standard of leadership and excellence for the Company, contributing towards many years of success and allowing the Company to remain financially strong during periods when the external challenges were significant. We wish him well as he moves into retirement at the end of this year.”