Retail Veteran Aggarwal Promoted To Deputy CEO Of Walmart India

Walmart India has promoted Sameer Aggarwal to be the new Deputy Chief Executive Officer according to published reports on Wednesday (Jan. 1).

“Sameer Aggarwal has been appointed Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Walmart India effective 1st January 2020. He will continue reporting to Krish Iyer, President & CEO Walmart India, and oversee operations, merchandising, people, marketing, real estate, kirana development program, digital, eCommerce and strategy,” a company spokesperson said.

This is Aggarwal’s second promotion in less than two years at Walmart India. A retail veteran, who previously worked at Yum Brands in Thailand and United Kingdom retailer Sainsbury’s in London, Aggarwal joined Walmart India in April 2018 as chief strategy and administration officer. Within eight months, he became chief business officer in December 2019. Agarwal’s LinkedIn profile confirms his recent promotion to the Deputy CEO role arrives a year to the day after the previous promotion.

Industry sources speculate that Aggarwal could eventually take over Walmart India’s flagship wholesale retail unit from current CEO Krish Iyer.

But Iyer has achievements that could sustain his top leadership role at the company. Among Iyer’s successful strategic moves in 2019, Walmart India invested in B2B supply chain management startup Ninjacart, a grocery-sector company that specializes in streamlining sourcing operations.

“Ninjacart’s focus on direct-from-farm sourcing resonates well with Walmart’s commitment to supporting farmers in India,” Iyer said in a statement. “We are working toward our commitment of sourcing 25 percent of produce in our Best Price cash-and-carry stores directly from farmers by 2021.”

Also in 2019, under Iyer’s guidance, Walmart India announced a partnership with HDFC Bank to offer buyers a commercial card within its Best Price Modern Wholesale B2B cash and carry stores.