Walmart U.S. President and CEO John Furner | Source: National Retail Federation (NRF)

The National Retail Federation (NRF) kicked off NRF 2022: Retail’s Big Show with the election of Walmart U.S. President and CEO John Furner as the new chairman of its board of directors. Furner steps into a role previously held by Qurate Retail President and CEO Mike George.

“Retailers are the lifeblood of local communities, serving millions of customers each day with the items they need and much more,” Furner says. “Our industry is uniquely positioned to ignite economic growth and positive change in neighborhoods big and small. I look forward to leading the NRF board during this consequential time, and I’m confident we’ll all continue to rise to the occasion.”

Furner’s appointment comes alongside the addition of Bloomingdale’s Chairman and CEO Tony Spring to the NRF board in a two-year term. The board serves as the governing body for the world’s largest trade association.

Related: Holiday Retail Sales Spiked 14.1% in 2021, NRF Says

Furner is set to join Shay for a Day 2 keynote session on Monday, Jan 17 at NRF 2022. The event runs through Tuesday at the Javtis Center in New York City. Shay recently published an update on LinkedIn explaining the importance of keeping the Big Show on track despite other events, such as Toy Fair New York, having been canceled.

Shay says that the event is expected to welcome approximately 20,000 attendees this year.

About the author

James Zahn

James Zahn

James Zahn, AKA The Rock Father, is Editor-in-Chief of The Toy Book, a Senior Editor at The Toy Insider and The Pop Insider, and Editor of The Toy Report, The Toy Book‘s weekly industry newsletter. As a pop culture and toy industry expert, Zahn has appeared as a panelist and guest at events including Comic-Con International: San Diego (SDCC) Wizard World Chicago, and the ASTRA Marketplace & Academy. Zahn has more than 30 years of experience in the entertainment, retail, and publishing industries, and is frequently called upon to offer expert commentary for publications such as Forbes, Marketwatch, the Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, USA Today, Reuters, the Washington Post, and more. James has appeared on History Channel’s Modern Marvels, was interviewed by Larry King and Anderson Cooper, and has been seen on Yahoo! Finance, CNN, CNBC, FOX Business, NBC, ABC, CBS, WGN, The CW, and more. Zahn joined the Adventure Media & Events family in 2016, initially serving as a member of the Parent Advisory Board after penning articles for the Netflix Stream Team, Fandango Family, PBS KIDS, Sprout Parents (now Universal Kids), PopSugar, and Chicago Parent. He eventually joined the company full time as a Senior Editor and moved up the ranks to Deputy Editor and Editor-in-Chief.

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