Lumber Liquidators (Toano, Va.) announced Monday that CEO Jeffrey Griffiths will retire Jan. 1. Stepping in to take Griffiths' place will be Robert Lynch, the company's current president and COO. Moving forward, Lynch will serve as the company's president and CEO, and he will replace Griffiths on Lumber Liquidators' board of directors on Jan. 1.
"During his five years with the company, Jeff has made significant contributions to Lumber Liquidators as we entered the public markets, established a strong infrastructure and expanded our footprint into new markets," said Tom Sullivan, the company's chairman of the board. "We greatly appreciate Jeff's leadership through a period of substantial growth and transformation. We are pleased that we will have an orderly transition that will allow the company to move forward seamlessly. With a solid foundation in place, we are excited to have Rob's enthusiasm and retail experience to lead our business going forward."
Lynch was appointed president and COO at Lumber Liquidators in December 2010.
"Having worked closely with Rob over the last year, I have full confidence in his ability to continue to drive our business forward and deliver value for Lumber Liquidators' shareholders," Griffiths said. "I am grateful to have worked with such a talented management team over the last five years and am proud of all that Lumber Liquidators has accomplished in that time."
To ensure a smooth transition, Griffiths will remain an employee of Lumber Liquidators through March 18.
"I would like to thank Jeff for his support and guidance over the past year, and I look forward to assuming the role of president and chief executive officer," Lynch said. "I joined Lumber Liquidators because of the industry-leading value proposition offered to the consumer, the entrepreneurial culture instilled by Tom and the solid supporting infrastructure Jeff implemented. Going forward, my focus will be to continue to work with our management team to enhance Lumber Liquidators' unique value proposition and further strengthen and grow our operations."
