Lowe's poaches second major JCPenney exec

By

Cassidy Mantor

Published
Jul 23, 2018

JCPenney executive vice president and chief customer officer Joseph McFarland has left the company to follow his former CEO and join Lowe's where he will serve as the company's executive vice president of stores.

In his new role, McFarland will oversee stores at Lowe's, which includes the Orchard Supply Hardward brand, pro and services businesses, operations engineering, and asset protection for the organization.

McFarland most recently served as EVP at JCPenney, a role he held for two and a half years. Before joining JCPenney, he spent over 20 years as President of Home Depot, the Atlanta-based competitor of Lowe's.

While he was at JCPenney, McFarland oversaw the Plano, Texas-based company's 1,000 brick-and-mortar store network. He was tasked with improving sales by streamlining productivity and implementing initiatives including same-day pickup and in-store online fulfillment.

The department store also saw 100 doors shuttered under his leadership as it struggled to remain afloat. It continues to be hit hard by primary competitors Walmart and Target who have been able to pivot their in-store experience into an omni-channel presence with a strong e-commerce business.

In a release, Marvin R. Ellison, president and CEO of Lowe's, said McFarland "is an exceptional leader with a proven record of driving sales and implementing omni-channel initiatives on a large scale." Ellison hired McFarland at JCPenney two years ago before returning to Lowe's himself in May of this year.

McFarland's appointment is effective August 15th.