Outgoing Wal-Mart CEO has deep metro Atlanta roots
Mike Duke is credited with boosting profits at the world’s largest retailer and increasing share value in the four years he’s headed Wal-Mart.
Duke took over as chief executive officer in 2009, the third CEO to follow founder Sam Walton, as the Great Recession that began months earlier was deepening.
While sales in recent quarters have languished, profits have increased 27 percent from the year before Duke took over, and the value of the retailer’s shares is up 69 percent, according to a Bloomberg analysis. The stock closed Monday at $80.43, up 62 cents.
Duke, 63, grew up in rural Fayette County, the son of a truck driver and a stay-at-home mom. He excelled in math and science and received an industrial engineering degree from Georgia Tech. He landed his first job at Atlanta’s Rich’s Department Stores, where he spent 23 years with the company and its subsequent incarnations.
Duke joined Wal-Mart in 1995. He served as head of Wal-Mart International from 2005 to February 2009 before taking over as CEO. He signaled plans to retire earlier this year and will remain chairman of the Wal-Mart board executive committee after stepping down Feb. 1.
