Mary Dillon

Mary Dillon’s nine-year tenure as CEO of Ulta Beauty was one of the most transformative in modern retail history, turning a small national chain into a behemoth of a retailer that had grown threefold by the time she left the corner office. So when Dillon announced in August 2022 that she was taking the reins of struggling sneaker retailer Foot Locker, investors anticipated a fairly quick turnaround. In her first year, Dillon did indeed make progress in mending relations with Nike—Foot Locker’s biggest supplier by far, but one that had shifted business away in recent years—and in closing some poorly performing stores. But Foot Locker’s problems are proving harder to tame than expected, notably at its Champs stores, where business is imploding. Sales fell 2.3% last year, and the declines have worsened in 2023 as sneaker-buyers, like many shoppers, have pulled back on their spending. What’s more, Dillon suspended Foot Locker’s dividend in August to conserve cash, alarming investors. To effect a transformation, Dillon plans to focus on Foot Locker’s inventory-tracking tech, improve its e-commerce, develop a loyalty program, and make stores more inviting.