BJ’s Wholesale Club appoints 2 new directors to its board

BJ’s Wholesale Club Holdings has appointed Steven L. Ortega and C. Marie Robinson to its board of directors, effective immediately, the Marlborough, Massachusetts-based warehouse club announced on Friday. The move comes as BJ’s President and CEO Bob Eddy assumed the role of chairman of the board the day before.

“We are pleased to welcome Steve and Marie as they bring strong industry expertise and unique perspectives to our board,” Eddy said. “Steve is an accomplished executive with decades of retail and omnichannel experience and Marie’s deep knowledge of supply chain transformation is invaluable as we now control our perishable and ambient supply chains. We look forward to their future contributions to BJ’s as we continue to execute on our goals of delivering long-term profitable growth and value creation.”

Ortega and Robinson will fill the recent vacancies in the company’s board.

“The addition of these two highly respected leaders as independent directors to our board reflects the company’s ongoing commitment to diversity of experience, background and thought,” said Rob Steele, the board’s lead independent director, in a statement. “We are excited to leverage the complementary insight and expertise of the board to continue to position BJ’s for future success.”

Ortega currently serves as chairman of the board of Leslie’s Inc., a NASDAQ-listed company offering direct-to-consumer pool and spa care products and services. Ortega joined Leslie’s Inc. in 2005 as EVP and CFO and served in various executive roles.

Prior to joining Leslie’s Inc., he held numerous leadership positions at BI-LO, LLC, American Stores Company and Lucky Stores, Inc. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from the University of Arizona.

Robinson has served as EVP and chief supply chain officer of Sysco Corporation, an NYSE-listed food products distributor, since 2020. Prior to Sysco, she served as SVP, chief operations and transformation officer of Capri Holding Limited, the parent holding company of Michael Kors, Versace and Jimmy Choo.

Robinson’s previous roles span various logistics and supply chain-focused leadership positions at ToysRUs, The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, Smart & Final Stores, LLC and Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.

She began her career as a logistics officer for the U.S. Army and holds a bachelor’s degree in communications from the University of Alabama and a master’s degree in leadership and organizational studies from Azusa Pacific University.

With a focus on value, BJ's operates 238 stores across 19 states.