Kohl’s Just Fired Its Brand New CEO for Unethical Behavior

Kohl’s canned its newly hired chief executive after an investigation showed he had cut a “highly unusal” business deal with a woman who had been his romantic partner, according to a report.

Ashley Buchanan — hired to lead the department store chain just four months ago — directed Kohl’s to “engage in vendor transactions that involved undisclosed conflicts of interest,” the company said on Thursday.

Specifically, the conflicts involved Buchanan’s relationship with Chandra Holt, a former colleague at Walmart, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

According to a company filing that didn’t specifically name Holt, the vendor signed a multimillion-dollar consulting agreement with Kohl’s with unusually favorable terms.

Holt is founder and CEO of Incredibrew, a coffee brand infused with vitamins and minerals, according to her LinkedIn profile.

“I’ve known Ashley Buchanan for 10 years, but I have not received any compensation for my Incredibrew business from Kohl’s,” Holt told Journal.

Buchanan and Holt rose through the ranks at Walmart before leaving around the same time for other positions at Texas-based retailers. Buchanan left in early 2020 to become CEO of Michaels. Holt left in 2021 to become CEO of Conn’s HomePlus.

Holt in 2023 became CEO of Beyond Inc. — the company that owns Overstock.com and Bed Bath & Beyond — where she led the company for a year.

Kohl’s named board member Michael Bender as interim CEO effective immediately. Bender has served as a director since July 2019 and was appointed board chair in May 2024.

In an all-hands meeting on Thursday, Bender and other Kohl’s executives “sought to reassure staffers,” but didn’t provide any additional details or take questions, the Journal reported.

“This is not a moment we expected nor the outcome we wanted for the company and our associates, but it is the right decision for us,” Bender said, according to a recording reviewed by the Journal.

Kohl’s shares rose 7.6% to $7.21 on the news.

Kohl’s audit committee oversaw an investigation that found Buchanan had not disclosed the inappropriate vendor relationships, for which he was fired for cause.

Buchanan will forfeit all equity awards from the company and be required to reimburse Kohl’s on a pro-rated basis for a signing award worth $2.5 million, according to securities filings.

Kohl’s said Buchanan’s termination had no bearing on the company’s financial performance. The company released preliminary first quarter results showing comparable sales will be down between 4% and 4.3%.

The Menomonee Falls, Wis.- based retailer has had three CEOs over the past three years as it struggles to stanch declining sales.

Buchanan followed Tom Kingsbury, who lasted less than two years on the job after succeeding Michelle Gass, who left Kohl’s for Levi’s.