True Value CEO to leave

True Value Company has announced leadership changes in its C-suite.

The hardware store retailer said that John Hartmann, who has served as CEO since 2013, will step down in May, and will remain a board member. Hartman will be succeeded as chief executive by True Value’s chief commercial officer, Chris Kempa, who joined the company in December 2019.

In other changes, current CFO Deb O'Connor will become president and CFO.

Hartman oversaw True Value’s sale to private equity firm ACON Investments in early 2018, a move that transformed the company from a hardware co-operative to a privately held distributor. The move was often touted by True Value as a growth-focused transaction that unlocked a quarter of a billion dollars in trapped equity for True Value members.

"Over the last seven years, John's [Hartmann] leadership has shaped the company, including the last two with us, where he was the visionary behind the transaction unlocking over $250 million of retailers' equity,” said Aron Schwartz, chairman. True Value Company. “He was the leading advocate of investments the company has made in supply chain, technology, as well as a number of merchandising and marketing initiatives, to better serve True Value's customers. As the company moves into this next phase of growth, we have a deep leadership bench, with Chris and Deb at the helm, to continue the important investments being made to support the growth and profitability of our retailers.”