Wal-Mart announces merchandising & marketing leadership.

Wal-Mart Stores Inc. announced a reorganization of its U. S. marketing and merchandising areas that will align its merchants with key product areas, each with clearly identified customer segments. Retailing veteran John Fleming will become the company’s chief merchandising officer after leading its marketing division for almost two years.

The company’s merchandise initiatives will be focused on five divisions. Four of these — grocery, entertainment, apparel and home — will report to Fleming. He will also have responsibility for two newly created organizations, one focused on the customer experience and the other on planning, pricing and replenishment.

The fifth division — pharmacy and optical — will continue reporting to Bill Simon, executive vice president of professional services and new business development. Simon reports to Eduardo Castro-Wright, president and CEO of Wal-Mart Stores U. S.

Last year Castro-Wright outlined to investors a three-year plan to increase the company’s sales and profitability. Much of that plan focused on becoming more relevant to the company’s diverse customer segments. The company began by conducting extensive research last year to determine what mattered most to its customers and also implemented a field organizational structure to facilitate execution of the new merchandising initiatives.

“As we enter year two, our focus will extend to merchandise assortment and marketing execution on the findings we identified in our customer research,” said Castro-Wright. “I have a lot of confidence in the talent now charged with moving the company to the next level.”