At the end of December 2022, roughly one million retail jobs were open, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported. But an even more critical labor shortage has arisen at the pinnacle of the jobs pyramid, Forbes reports: the lack of CEOs, especially at struggling retailers.
Among the companies with corner-office vacancies to fill are VF, Adidas, Calvin Klein, Puma, Designer Brands, The RealReal, Stitch Fix and Rite Aid, the business publication reports.
Pandemic disruptions and their immediate aftermath have resulted in the current bumper crop of retail CEO vacancies. But major retailers may find a greater need to overhaul their C-suite as future events unfold.
“Boards of challenged retailers are looking for a ‘silver bullet CEO’ who has instant credibility with the Street,” Catherine Lepard, Managing Partner of Global Retail as executive search firm Heidrick and Struggles, told Forbes. “Every company is competing for the rarified CEO with an excellent track record. But that pool is small, and there’s not much incentive for some of these CEOs to leave their high-performing companies to do something messy.”
Click here for the full Forbes report.
Retiring? Let Wilkerson Do the Heavy Lifting
Retirement can be a great part of life. As Nanji Singadia puts it, “I want to retire and enjoy my life. I’m 78 now and I just want to take a break.” That said, Nanji decided that the best way to move ahead was to contact the experts at Wilkerson. He chose them because he knew that closing a store is a heavy lift.
To maximize sales and move on to the next, best chapter of his life, he called Wilkerson—but not before asking his industry friends for their opinion. He found that Wilkerson was the company most recommended and says their professionalism, experience and the homework they did before the launch all helped to make his going out of business sale a success. “Wilkerson were working on the sale a month it took place,” he says. “They did a great job.”