J.C. Penney names CFO

The CFO of The Vitamin Shoppe is moving to J.C. Penney.

The department store retailer announced that Bill Wafford has been named executive VP, CFO, effective April 8. He succeeds Michael Fung, who temporarily joined Penney as interim CFO in October.   

Wafford most recently served as executive VP, CFO, of the Vitamin Shoppe, a position he was appointed to in May 2018, where he played a significant role in reducing debt, decreasing inventory and improving operating income in 2018, Penney said.  He joined Vitamin Shoppe in 2017 as senior VP overseeing strategy, finance, international operations and business development.

Prior to The Vitamin Shoppe, Wafford served as a partner in the advisory practice group of KPMG, following a five-year career at Walgreens Boots Alliance. While at Walgreens, he served in positions of increasing responsibility and became VP of international finance where he was involved in the acquisition of Alliance Boots. He was subsequently appointed to VP and managing director for the company's global venture capital portfolio.

Before Walgreens, Wafford held multiple finance-related positions with Archstone Consulting, Bank of America and at Target Corp.

"Bill brings extraordinary depth and breadth of experience to our executive team,” said Penney CEO Jill Soltau. “His first-hand knowledge and understanding of financial turnarounds will help JCPenney deliver improved results and drive profitable growth. Additionally, his extensive career supporting global retail and consumer brand companies will prove instrumental as we continue to strengthen our capabilities, optimize our product selection, and reduce unproductive inventory to effectively meet and exceed shoppers' expectations."