Kroger ousts long-time CEO after probe into personal conduct
Longtime Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen has resigned after an internal investigation found that his personal conduct was “inconsistent” with the company’s ethics policy.
Reuters
Kroger will shutter close to 60 locations across the country over the next 18 months, the supermarket giant announced on Friday, June 20.
According to Kroger’s first quarter 2025 sales report, the company expects a “modest financial benefit” will result from closing “approximately 60 stores.” Kroger also said it intends to reinvest the savings from the closures into the “customer experience.”
Kroger will offer roles in other stores to all associates currently employed at closing locations, the report says.
Concerning the shuttering locations, Erin Rolfes, a spokesperson for Kroger, told USA TODAY in an email that the company “will not be releasing the store list at this time.”
Kroger operated 2,731 stores at the beginning of its fiscal year, meaning the cuts represent about 2% of all of its locations.
Why is Kroger closing around 60 locations?
Interim CEO Ron Sargent spoke about the shuttering locations during a conference call with Wall Street analysts on Friday, June 20, stating that the unprofitable stores being closed were spread around the U.S.
Kroger reaffirmed on Friday its plan to spend between $3.6 billion and $3.8 billion this year on capital expenditures, such as money for building new stores and expanding and renovating existing ones.
The closings come after Sargent took over the CEO role from Rodney McMullen, who abruptly resigned on March 3 following an internal ethics investigation. The grocer is currently undergoing a national search for a new CEO.
Closures come after two rounds of layoffs
The store closures come months after Kroger announced two rounds of layoffs of an unspecified number of non-store workers this spring.
“We are focusing on key priority areas that support our go-to-market strategy. As part of this prioritization work, we announced team restructures and a small number of eliminated roles to improve efficiency,” Kroger said in a statement obtained by the Cincinnati Enquirer, part of the USA TODAY Network.
Based in downtown Cincinnati, Kroger employs 409,000 workers nationwide.
Contributing: Alexander Coolidge/ Cincinnati Enquirer
Jonathan Limehouse covers breaking and trending news for USA TODAY. Reach him at JLimehouse@gannett.com.
