# Arthur C. Martinez

Arthur C. Martinez (born September 25, 1939) is an American businessman and executive who formerly served as chief executive officer (CEO) of Sears. He is best known as the person who led a turnaround of Sears, Roebuck, and Company in the 1990s.

## Early life and education

Martinez was born September 25, 1939 in New York City, the only child of Joseph Martinez (né José Martínez; 1900-1987) and Agnes Martinez (née Caulfield). His father was born in Mexico with Spanish ancestry. His mother was a homemaker who had immigrated from Ireland and his father was a seafood wholesaler at the Fulton Fish Market in New York City.
He was raised in Brooklyn and graduated high school at age 16. He earned a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Polytechnic University in 1960 at age 20. He then served as an officer with the Army Corps of Engineers in Germany for two years. Upon his return, he entered Harvard Business School and received his MBA in 1965.

## Career

Martinez’s first job was stocking shelves at Bohack’s, a now-defunct chain of New York City grocery stores. After receiving his MBA from Harvard Business School, he worked in financial planning at Esso, a brand of Standard Oil (now ExxonMobil). He then worked for International Paper Co. as a business analyst, followed by RCA Records, where he rose to Chief Financial Officer.
Martinez entered the retail business in 1980 when he became the Chief Financial Officer for Saks Fifth Avenue. In 1987, he became Group CEO for Retail at BATUS, Inc., the owner of Saks. In 1990, he returned to Saks as Vice Chairman for two years.
In 1992, Martinez became CEO of the Sears Merchandise Group and undertook a major restructuring of the business. In January 1993, he began closing 113 unprofitable stores, cutting payroll by 50,000 employees and eliminating the Sears Catalog along with 2,000 catalog outlets. Martinez also introduced the “Softer Side of Sears” ad campaign, which helped attract more women customers.
In 1995, Martinez was named Chairman, CEO and President of the parent company, Sears, Roebuck, and Company. During his eight-year tenure at Sears, Martinez initiated a major overhaul of the company's operations and made the company profitable again. He focused on changing the company culture, emphasizing the importance of customer experience. He remodeled the stores, upgraded the merchandise and added private-brand apparel and cosmetics. In 1995, Sears’s revenue rose 5.9% to $35 billion, with profit growing from $890 million to $995 million and the company’s stock surging 71%.
Martinez retired from Sears as Chairman and CEO in 2000. Following his retirement, he served on the boards of over a dozen companies, including HSN; International Flavors & Fragrances Inc.; Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia Inc.; ABN AMRO; Liz Claiborne; PepsiCo; and AIG following its government bailout. Martinez also served on the boards of numerous organizations such as the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago, the National Retail Federation, the National Urban League, Polytechnic University, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, and Greenwich Healthcare Services, among others.
Martinez wrote about his experience at Sears in the book, The Hard Road to the Softer Side, which was published in 2001 by Crown, a division of Penguin Random House.
In 1995, Arthur Martinez was honored with an Edison Achievement Award for his commitment to innovation throughout his career. He was named CEO of the Year in 1996 by Financial World magazine, and in 1998 he received the National Retailer Federation’s Gold Medal Award. Martinez is also a recipient of the Harvard Alumni Achievement Award, the school’s highest honor, as well as honorary degrees from Notre Dame and Polytechnic University.
In 2014, Martinez became Executive Chairman of Abercrombie & Fitch, where he is credited with helping turn around the struggling retail company. Some notable changes the company made during his time as Chairman include toning down its provocative marketing and creating a better distinction between the Hollister and Abercrombie brands. Martinez also mentored incoming CEO Fran Horowitz ahead of his retirement from the board in 2018.

## Personal life

On July 30, 1966, Martinez married Elizabeth Dorothy Rusch, a daughter of Forrest B. Rusch of Cleveland, Ohio, at St. Vincent Ferrer Roman Catholic Church in Cleveland. They had one daughter and a son:
* Lauren Martinez (born 1970), who married Richard S. DuPont, Jr. (born 1968), a son of Richard DuPont, Sr., a private investor of the DuPont family, and Emily T. Frick, trustee of the Frick Collection and Old Westbury Gardens. Her husband is a direct descendant of Éleuthère Irénée du Pont, founder of the Du Pont company.
* Gregory Arthur Martinez (born 1974), who married Caroline Leventhal, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Stuart A. Leventhal, of New York City, who formerly owned the Franzus Company, and was president of Clermont Capital Partners.
Martinez and his wife are residents of Greenwich, Connecticut, where he also served on a variety of nonprofit boards.