Dive Brief:
- Sprouts Farmers Market announced on Tuesday that Chief Financial Officer Denise Paulonis is leaving the company. She will become CEO of hair care supply chain Sally Beauty Holdings on Oct. 1, according to an announcement from that retailer on Wednesday.
- Current Sprouts board member Lawrence “Chip” Molloy will assume the CFO role on Sept. 25. He will step down from the company's board at that time.
- This is Molloy’s second time serving as Sprouts’ CFO. He filled the position on an interim basis between June 2019 and February 2020 before Paulonis joined the grocer.
Dive Insight:
Sprouts is turning to a familiar face to fill its chief finance role following the departure of Paulonis after a little more than 18 months with the company.
Molloy has served on Sprouts’ board of directors since 2013 and was the company’s CFO during a critical period after CEO Jack Sinclair joined the company in summer 2019. His several years with the company have tracked a significant period of evolution for Sprouts as it has rapidly expanded its store count, weathered a pandemic and hatched plans for a smaller store format.
During his more than 30-year career, Molloy has served as CFO of PetSmart and Under Armour, and as interim CEO of Torrid, a women's fashion retailer, according to Tuesday's announcement.
“Chip’s extensive knowledge of all aspects of our business and strategy and long-tenured executive experience makes him ideally suited to lead our finance team as we execute on our strategy,” Sinclair said in a statement.
Paulonis previously served as CFO of arts-and-crafts retailer Michaels. She has also worked for PepsiCo, McKinsey & Company and Bank of America, and has been on the board of Sally Beauty since 2018.
Sprouts’ sales have been underwhelming lately as it’s undergoing a strategic shift during the pandemic. But Sinclair said early last month during the company’s latest earnings call that he remains confident in Sprouts’ more targeted consumer focus and build-out of smaller, more efficient stores.
