Lowe's Canada restructures corporate leadership

Lowe's Canada has restructured its senior leadership team ahead of plans to continue growing its footprint in Canada.



Nick Padovano was appointed to the newly created position of head of operations and supply chain. In this role, Padovano will be responsible for leading the company's store operations, store support and supply chain functions, in addition to overseeing commercial and installed sales as well as distribution. Padovano has more than 30 years of operations experience in the retail industry. Most recently, Padovano was SVP, store operations at The Bay/Lord and Taylor. Prior to that, he was SVP, store operations at HBC-Zellers where he was responsible for all aspects of operations for 275 Zellers stores, and previous to that he was SVP, store operations at HBC-Bay/Zellers overseeing 100 Bay stores and 300 Zellers stores. Padovano has an associate of applied science degree in retail management from Niagara Community College.



Igor Halencak was appointed to the newly created position of head of merchandising and marketing. In this role, Halencak will be responsible for leading the company's merchandising and marketing strategies, as well as the planogram facility. Most recently, Halencak was SVP, home, hardlines and major appliances at Sears Canada. Prior to that, he spent 14 years with Loblaw's Companies in various senior positions in merchandising, promotions and category management. His most recent role with Loblaw's was VP, conventional grocery.



Tony Tutolo was appointed to the newly created position of head of finance and administration. In this role, Tutolo will be responsible for leading the company's finance, loss prevention and information technology functions, as well as project management and merchandising support. Tutolo has more than 20 years of experience in risk management, information technology and finance. Most recently, Tutolo was VP of finance, risk and information technology at the Beer Store and Brewer's Distributed. Prior to this, he held senior executive roles with Samsung Electronics Canada and Sara Lee Bakery Canada. Tutolo has a bachelor’s degree from Wilfrid Laurier University and has achieved his C.G.A designation.



"I am thrilled to add such a talented group of seasoned leaders to the Lowe's Canada organization," said Sylvain Prud'homme, president, Lowe's Canada. "These newly appointed senior executives were handpicked from some of the country's top retailers. The diversity of their backgrounds will enhance our capacity to understand our customer's expectations, continue to remain relevant and build stronger partnerships with our vendor community as we grow our business."