BENTONVILLE, Ark. — Megan Crozier was appointed executive vice president and chief merchandising officer of Sam’s Club in September 2019 after spending 16 years at Walmart U.S. In that role, she leads a team of merchants, pharmacists, product managers and supply chain engineers who are winning plaudits for developing and curating a compelling product assortment that not only keeps members coming back for more but is drawing new members — including many Millennials and Gen Z consumers — to the warehouse club.

Crozier began her career at Walmart as a logistical engineer after graduating with a degree in industrial engineering from Oklahoma State University. After a year working at a Walmart grocery distribution center in Texas, in 2004 she was appointed merchandising logistics manager of supply chain for Walmart U.S., and she moved to Bentonville.

The activities of the buyers and category managers proved to be fascinating, though, and Crozier moved to be the electronics buyer in 2005.

“My role was to help merchants find efficiencies in their supply chain, but I found myself becoming more and more interested in the work of a merchant,” she said in a 2020 interview. “I was able to leverage my connections with the merchandising team to transition into a role as a buyer in electronics, and I’ve never looked back.”

Over the following decade she moved steadily up the merchandising ladder and in 2015 was promoted to vice president and divisional merchandise manager for frozen foods.

Two years later she was elevated to senior vice president and general merchandise manager of packaged goods, the role she held when she was named chief merchant for Sam’s Club.

A major focus for Crozier and her merchant team has been reimagining and repositioning the company’s Member’s Mark private label to become a sustainable, purpose-driven brand. The brand was relaunched last year.

Megan Crozier

“I’ve been in this role to really elevate the quality of it [Member’s Mark], to make sure it truly stands for what our members want,” Crozier remarked during an NRF (National Retail Federation) Retail Gets Real podcast last month. “It can stand for innovation. It can stand for extreme value. It can stand for features and benefits that you just can’t find anywhere else.”

A distinguishing feature of Member’s Mark among the plethora of private label lines in the marketplace is the fact that items are designed not just for members, but with their input as well. A group of 40,000 members dubbed the My Member’s Mark Community provide feedback that influences such product characteristics as design and flavor.

To illustrate the impressive progress that has been made with the brand, Member’s Mark has become the top-selling apparel brand at Sam’s Club, even though the retailer has added powerful national brands such as Land’s End, Christian Siriano and Vince Camuto over the last year. Sales of Member’s Mark apparel increased more than 30% last year, driving an increase of nearly 12% for the overall apparel category that was achieved despite a reduction of SKUs and brands.

“Every day in retail you get a report card: ‘Are we happy or sad today based on what our members tell us?’ ” Crozier told Retail Gets Real. “I love that real-time feedback and love delighting members and finding things that they are excited about and — right now especially — giving them opportunities to save money and find value.”