Walgreens CEO Rosalind Brewer steps down

Reuters | Walgreens Boots Alliance CEO Rosalind Brewer has stepped down, the U.S. pharmacy chain operator said on Friday, less than 3 years after the former Starbucks executive took the top job.

Brewer’s departure was part of a mutually agreed decision, Walgreens said, without providing further details, after a tenure that saw the company’s share price nearly cut in half as it tried to broaden its reach as a healthcare provider.

Walgreens named lead independent director Ginger Graham as interim chief while it searches for a permanent replacement.

Walgreens made a series of deals during her tenure to push deeper into healthcare and pivot from its core pharmacy business by operating doctors’ offices and offering more services. However, the company earlier this year warned that weak spending trends could continue into 2024.

Brewer was one of the few Black CEOs among the Fortune 500 list of America’s largest companies. She will receive a US$9 million severance and remain as a special adviser through February 2024 that will pay her a monthly consulting fee of US$375,000, Walgreens said.

The pharmacy chain operator said it expects full-year 2023 adjusted earnings per share to be at or near the low end of its prior forecast.