The Container Store Group, Inc. (NYSE:TCS) (the “Company”), today announced that Satish Malhotra, an experienced retail executive, will succeed Melissa Reiff as CEO and President on February 1, 2021. Effective March 1, 2021, Ms. Reiff will retire from the Company, while retaining her position as Chairwoman of the Board of Directors until the annual meeting of shareholders in late summer 2021.
Melissa Reiff, Chairwoman and Chief Executive Officer commented, “The Board and I have spent months preparing for my planned retirement and, after a thorough and exhaustive search, we are thrilled to announce the appointment of Satish Malhotra as our next CEO and President. Satish is a seasoned retail executive, with decades of diverse and valuable experience, who I believe will be a great fit for our organization. The timing of this leadership transition could not be better, with our company enjoying the success of the multi-year sales and profit revitalization efforts that have driven, and are expected to continue to drive our performance. We have an extraordinarily talented team that I have been privileged to lead, a unique and differentiated business and a long runway for growth ahead. I am delighted to welcome Satish and look forward to watching the continued success of The Container Store under his leadership.”
Mr. Malhotra said, “I have long admired The Container Store and the leadership position they have developed in the storage and organization niche, as well as their quest for custom closet domination that I believe is well underway. The innovation, creativity and culture of the organization are truly extraordinary and I am thrilled to become a part of this and lead the company into its next chapter of growth.”
Malhotra most recently served as the Chief Retail and Operating Officer for Sephora. He was one of the first executives to join Sephora in its debut to the U.S. retail landscape and, in his 21 years with the company has grown and supported the business in various leadership roles. Prior to his current role, Mr. Malhotra served as Chief Operating Officer for Sephora and was responsible for Technology, Supply Chain, Store Development, Legal, Strategy and Partnerships, including the Sephora inside JCPenney (SiJCP) business which now operates over 600 stores. He also spent several years overseeing Sephora’s expansion into Canada and Latin America. Before joining Sephora, Mr. Malhotra was a Transaction Services Senior Associate at PwC and is a Certified Public Accountant (inactive). Mr. Malhotra and his family will be relocating to Dallas, Texas.
Fiscal Third Quarter Update
Results for the fiscal third quarter 2020 are tracking well ahead of the expectations the Company shared on their October 21, 2020 fiscal second quarter 2020 earnings call. As a result, the Company currently expects fiscal third quarter 2020 sales to increase in the high teens range compared to the prior year period, with adjusted earnings per diluted share to be in the $0.35 to $0.40 range versus $0.05 in the prior year period.