Chewy names interim CFO to replace retiring Mario Marte

Dive Brief:

Online pet food supplier Chewy named chief accounting officer Stacy Bowman as its interim CFO, replacing outgoing finance chief Mario Marte, on July 28, according to a Thursday release. Marte, who joined the company in 2015, is stepping down from the role after five years in the CFO seat, according to his LinkedIn account.
The news comes about seven months after the company disclosed in a December filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission that Marte planned to retire from the company “on a date to be determined in 2023” and that it would begin a search for his successor.
Bowman, 44, will temporarily step into the role of finance chief as the company continues its hunt for Marte’s permanent replacement. In the release, Chewy CEO Sumit Singh credited Marte for his role in driving Chewy’s growth and margin expansion over his tenure and described Bowman as “a respected leader who has worked alongside Mario over his tenure” who is “well-positioned to assist through a seamless transition.”

Dive Insight:

Marte, who led Chewy’s initial public offering in 2019, served as the company’s vice president — finance and treasurer from April 2015 to August 2018 before becoming CFO, according to his LinkedIn profile. He has also previously served as vice president of financial planning and analysis at hotel giant Hilton and as division controller of onboard service at American Airlines.

In fiscal 2022 Marte, 47, received compensation totaling $1.05 million, including $595,000 in salary and $446,250 in non-equity executive plan compensation, compared to total compensation of $3.47 million in the prior fiscal year, which included the same salary and non-equity compensation but was boosted by $2.42 million in stock awards, according to the company’s May 22 proxy filing.

Chewy, founded in 2011 and acquired by PetSmart in 2017, went public as a standalone company in 2019 and it is now the largest e-commerce pet care retailer in the U.S., according to a Morningstar report.

The sector experienced a boost in the early days of the pandemic as adoption rates increased and consumers allocated more dollars to their pets and Chewy has been able to hold onto some of those gains, Industry Dive sister publication Retail Dive previously reported.