Kohl’s Dismisses CEO Over ‘Undisclosed Conflicts Of Interest’

Kohl’s fired CEO Ashley Buchanan on May for cause
The dismissal came after an investigation uncovered unethical and undisclosed conflicts of interest
Michael Bender will be serving as interim CEO, while the company searches for a new leader

Kohl’s (NYSE:KSS) dismissed its newly installed CEO on May 1, citing “undisclosed conflicts of interest,” the company said.

Ashley Buchanan had been in the position for just four months before the company discovered allegedly unethical behavior. According to the retailer, an outside investigation found that Buchanan “violated company policies by directing the company to engage in vendor transactions that involved undisclosed conflicts of interest.” As a result, he was terminated “for cause,” a rebuke that carries serious weight in these circles.

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A regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission disclosed a few more details about what the company said it discovered. “Mr. Buchanan had directed that the Company conduct business with a vendor founded by an individual with whom Mr. Buchanan has a personal relationship on highly unusual terms favorable to the vendor and that he also caused the Company to enter into a multi-million dollar consulting agreement wherein the same individual was a part of the consulting team,” the filing said.

The filing also said Mr. Buchanan did not disclose this relationship as required under the company’s code of ethics, which amounted to his dismissal with cause.

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Buchanan joined Kohl’s in January. During his short tenure, he was unable to do so, with sales continuing to decline by 4.3%, according to the company’s preliminary Q1 earnings report released on April 30. However, Kohl’s said that his dismissal was not related to the company’s performance.

In a note on LinkedIn, Neil Saunders, the managing director of GlobalData Retail, wrote that the “disruption and distraction” of Buchanan’s firing “is the last thing that Kohl’s needs as it tries to turn itself around. Kohl’s needs stability. It currently has chaos.”

Chair Michael Bender will serve as interim CEO until a successor is named, according to Kohl’s.

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