MATTHEWS, N.C. — An executive leadership transition has positioned Family Dollar Stores Inc. for its next wave of growth.

An executive leadership transition has positioned Family Dollar Stores Inc. for its next wave of growth.

The recently announced retirement of president and chief operating officer R. James Kelly after 15 years with the chain, and the appointment of Mike Bloom, formerly head of merchandising and supply chain at CVS Caremark Corp., brings a high-powered veteran from the chain drug industry to the nation’s second-largest small-box discount chain.

"A highly respected leader in the industry, Mike is a great addition to our team," remarked chairman and chief executive officer Howard Levine at the time of the announcement. "With more than 30 years of operational experience in small-box retailing, he is a seasoned merchant with a proven track record of leading high-performing teams and delivering results. In addition to being a strong leader, Mike is passionate about the customer and driving customer loyalty. In his new role Mike will have responsibility for major operational functions, including store operations, merchandising, marketing, global sourcing and supply chain."

Bloom most recently had been executive vice president of merchandising, supply chain, marketing and advertising at CVS. He had been promoted to that position in March 2010 after serving as senior vice president of merchandising and supply chain.

Since January Bloom and Scott Baker, executive vice president of internal operations and real estate, had shared direction of CVS’ retail business until the company hired former Macy’s executive Mark Cosby as president of CVS/pharmacy in August.

In addition to Bloom’s hiring, Family Dollar promoted Dorlisa Flur to the post of vice chair, strategy and chief administrative officer.

As Levine noted, Flur has been a major catalyst of change across the Family Dollar organization since she joined the retailer in 2004 from McKinsey & Co. She first led a major customer research initiative, oversaw the upgrading of its real estate process, spearheaded the development of a new store format and, more recently, took responsibility for marketing and then merchandising.

"Dorlisa has led a number of significant cross-functional initiatives including the launch of our food strategy, development of our Concept Renewal format and the repositioning of our private brand program," said Levine. "Most recently Dorlisa has served as our chief merchandising officer, leading our ongoing efforts to improve the shopping experience, strengthen our merchandising capabilities and enhance customer loyalty. In her new role Dorlisa will continue to provide leadership for major growth initiatives, including our chainwide renovation effort. She will also assume executive responsibility for strategy, customer insights, information technology and human resources."

With the appointment of Bloom, Family Dollar joins rival Dollar General Corp. in fielding a leadership team featuring proven executives from chain drug retailing. Dollar General’s chairman and CEO Rick Dreiling came from Duane Reade, while chief merchant Todd Vasos joined from Longs Drug Stores.

Both chains share roots in the dollar store business, one that traditionally depended on merchandise obtained on closeouts and opportunistic buys. But both have been transformed in recent years through management changes that have altered their organizations, disciplines and business processes.

As a result, Both chains, now engaged in aggressive expansion programs despite a lackluster economy, constitute a serious competitive threat to other mass market trade classes.