Lowe’s Appoints New Chief Operating Officer

Lowe’s Cos. Inc. has announced that Richard D. Maltsbarger, Lowe’s chief development officer and president, international, has been named the company’s chief operating officer (COO), effective Feb. 3, 2018.

Maltsbarger will succeed Rick D. Damron, who has served in the position since 2012. Damron is planning to retire after more than 35 years with Lowe’s.

As COO, Maltsbarger will be charged with “delivering seamless omnichannel experiences to execute Lowe’s brand promise and building lasting customer loyalty,” the company says in a press release. He will also manage store operations and supply chain logistics and work closely with chief customer officer Michael P. McDermott to improve the customer experience for Lowe’s consumers.

“Richard is a proven leader with a keen understanding of our business and industry. He brings vast consumer knowledge from various roles within Lowe’s and has been instrumental in the development and implementation of our strategy. We are confident that in this new role, Richard will continue to enhance our capabilities and processes as we execute our plans and meet customers’ rapidly evolving expectations,” Robert A. Niblock, chairman, president and CEO of Lowe’s, says.

Maltsbarger has led Lowe’s international operations since 2015. He has prior experience creating and implementing operating strategies based on consumer research, the press release states. He joined Lowe’s in 2004 as director of customer analytics and since then, he has served in various leadership roles within the company. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in agricultural economics from the University of Missouri and holds an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

Lowe’s has more than 2,370 home improvement and hardware stores throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico and employs roughly 290,000 people. In 2016, the company reported $65 billion in sales. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Mooresville, North Carolina.