Click to Skip Ad
Closing in...

Best Buy names new CEO with buyout bid still on the table [updated]

Updated Dec 19th, 2018 8:32PM EST
BGR

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

Best Buy (BBY) on Monday announced that former Carlson boss Hubert Joly will take over as chief executive officer beginning next month. The retail giant’s former CEO, Brian Dunn, stepped down without warning this past April after the big-box retailer hit a rough patch and said during its fourth-quarter earnings call that it would shutter 50 U.S. stores. Now, The Wall Street Journal reports that Joly will be Dunn’s permanent replacement beginning in September. Best Buy still has an $8.5 billion buyout bid on the table from founder and former CEO Richard Schulze, though he is reportedly planning to revise his offer in an effort to make it more attractive. Joly stepped down from his CEO role at Carlson, which owns global franchises including Radisson and TGI Friday’s, on Sunday and former CFO Trudy Rautio will take his place, according to the Journal.

UPDATE: Barron’s is reporting that Best Buy has formally rejected Schulze’s buyout offer. The former CEO said he was “disappointed and surprised” by the company’s announcement and noted that he “will continue to pursue my proposal which will provide compelling value for shareholders and create new opportunities for customers and a bright future for Best Buy employees.”

Read

Zach Epstein
Zach Epstein Executive Editor

Zach Epstein has been the Executive Editor at BGR for more than 10 years. He manages BGR’s editorial team and ensures that best practices are adhered to. He also oversees the Ecommerce team and directs the daily flow of all content. Zach first joined BGR in 2007 as a Staff Writer covering business, technology, and entertainment.

His work has been quoted by countless top news organizations, and he was recently named one of the world's top 10 “power mobile influencers” by Forbes. Prior to BGR, Zach worked as an executive in marketing and business development with two private telcos.