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NRF tabs Shay as CEO

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WASHINGTON — Matt Shay has been selected to serve as the next president and chief executive officer of the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Matt Shay has been selected to serve as the next president and chief executive officer of the National Retail Federation (NRF).

Shay assumes his new responsibilities on May 10 and will be formally elected to the post at the trade association’s June 22 board meeting. He succeeds Tracy Mullin, who is retiring after 17 years as the NRF’s CEO. Shay joins the NRF from the International Franchise Association (IFA), where he served as president and CEO.

“Matt brings a deep level of knowledge and experience that will be very beneficial to NRF and its members,” said Macy’s Inc. chairman, president and CEO Terry Lundgren, who was named chairman of the NRF’s board of directors in January. “He has the leadership skills, energy and enthusiasm necessary to guide this organization confidently into the future, and I look forward to working with him on the issues and projects that lie ahead.”

Shay began his career at the Ohio Council of Retail Merchants. He joined the IFA in 1993 and served in several positions of increasing responsibility, including vice president and director of government relations, senior vice president and chief counsel, and executive vice president and chief operating officer.

He was named IFA president in 2004 and added the title of CEO in 2007. (The IFA represents more than 1,300 franchise companies around the world, including a number of retail firms.)

“I am thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with NRF’s outstanding board of directors and staff in leading such a dynamic and influential association,” Shay said. “Retail is the lifeblood of our economy, and with the challenges we face on Capitol Hill, the stakes have never been higher. There is a lot of work to be done, and I’m very excited to get started.”

Mullin is retiring after 30 years with the NRF, including 17 years as its CEO. Her tenure has been marked by a number of significant changes. Among them:

• The move of the NRF’s headquarters in 1993 from New York City, where it had been based since 1911, to Washington, D.C.

• The evolution of the NRF from a department store group to one that represents all retail formats, including department, specialty, discount, mass merchandise, independent, grocery and pharmacy stores.

• The near tripling of the NRF’s annual budget, from $12 million to $35 million.

• The acquisition of several independent groups, including Shop.org and the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association.

Mullin had held a series of positions of increasing responsibility at the NRF before being named CEO in 1993. Before joining the NRF, Mullin served as senior legislative adviser to the minority leader of the U.S. Senate.


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