The high-powered CEO archetype is usually reserved for Wall Street hedge funds and visionary tech masterminds, but even the average Midwestern outdoor lifestyle supplier can benefit from the wisdom and talent of top managerial talent.
Mills Fleet Farm and its new owner, investment firm KKR, announced that Duncan Mac Naughton, the former chief merchandising and marketing officer at Walmart, would be joining the retailer as its new CEO. Hugh Leasum was raised to COO and will report directly to Mac Naughton.
“I am honored to lead Mills Fleet Farm, a true legacy brand in the Midwest and one that I have grown up with since my early days in Wisconsin,” Mac Naughton said in a statement. “In partnership with the executive management team and KKR, I look forward to furthering the opportunities for growth that lie ahead for Mills Fleet Farm and continuing to invest significantly in the business, adding infrastructure, stores and local jobs.”
The news came just an hour after Duluth News Tribune reported that KKR had finalized its acquisition of Mills Fleet Farm. The global investment firm had been working on the deal for months, and if the speed with which Mac Naughton was appointed serves as any indication of things to come, KKR’s investment doesn’t seem poised for failure.
“We have decided to partner with KKR in order to take Mills Fleet Farm to the next level of growth for the future,” Co-Presidents Henry Mills II and Stewart Mills, Jr. said in a statement. “We took great care in our approach to finding the right partner who shared our values and would preserve the legacy the Mills family has built after serving the Midwest over the last 60 years. We truly believe KKR is the best fit for us organizationally and also the best fit for our employees.”
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