Ross Stores announced merchandising leadership changes at its Ross Dress for Less and dd’s Discounts divisions the company said are intended to strengthen the execution of its off-price strategies and drive profitable market-share gains.
Effective December 1, Ross will promote Karen Fleming to president and chief merchandising officer of the Ross Dress for Less division. She will continue reporting to Barbara Rentler, Ross Stores CEO. Fleming currently is president and chief merchandising officer of the company’s dd’s Discounts division, the company stated.
Also on December 1, Karen Sykes will become president and chief merchandising officer of dd’s Discounts, reporting to Rentler, Ross noted. Sykes currently is executive vice president, merchandising overseeing the men’s and children’s categories at Ross Dress for Less.
In announcing the changes, Rentler said, “We are very pleased to announce the promotions of these two extremely talented senior executives. Karen Fleming is a gifted and seasoned executive with over two decades at our company serving in different leadership roles at both Ross Dress for Less and dd’s Discounts. I’m excited for Karen as she takes on this new role leading the merchandising efforts for the entire Ross Dress for Less chain. Karen Sykes is a skilled merchant with over three decades of experience within our organization. I’m delighted for Karen’s well-deserved promotion, where she will lead the dd’s Discounts merchandising team. I believe her in-depth knowledge of the off-price business and demonstrated leadership skills will drive continued profitable growth at dd’s.”
