Walmart CEO Retires Amid Retail CEO Exodus Apocalypse 2025
KEY POINTS
- •Walmart CEO Doug McMillon announced his retirement for January 2026 after serving 12 years.
- •The retail sector has seen a 79% surge in CEO departures in 2025, with 43 exits by September.
- •John Furner, head of Walmart’s US division, is set to succeed McMillon starting February 1.
- •Executive turnovers are higher in retail than other industries due to tariffs, labor costs, and shifting shopping patterns.
After 12 years at Walmart’s helm, Doug McMillon is ghosting the retail world in January 2026, just as 43 CEOs ditched their retail thrones by September—up from 24 last year thanks to killer jobs that include battling high tariffs, zooming labor costs, and consumers who apparently prefer their retail therapy slightly less this year. Kroger’s Rodney McMullen slid out March after some shady personal conduct investigations, Kohl’s Ashley Buchanan got shown the door in May for friendly bribery schemes, and Target’s Brian Cornell plans an elegant exit in February. Meanwhile, Walmart’s US head John Furner inherits the retail inferno with no safety net.
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When even Walmart’s CEO can't handle retail, you know high tariffs and bad bosses are learning curves with no refunds.
Watching Walmart’s CEO retire as 43 retail bosses bail? Retail’s new motto: 'If you can't sell, sell yourself out.'
Retail CEOs fleeing faster than when the Wi-Fi cuts out during Black Friday. Doug McMillon just handed off the flamethrower.
Source: Businessinsider | Published: 11/15/2025 | Author: Katherine Tangalakis-Lippert
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