John Walden (businessman)

John Carl Walden (born 7 January 1960) is an American businessman and the former chief executive of Home Retail Group.

Early life
Walden was born in Chicago, Illinois. He received his J.D. from Chicago-Kent College of Law at the Illinois Institute of Technology in 1986, and his M.B.A. from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University in 1994.

Career
In 1990, Walden began his retail career as chief operating officer of Peapod. In 1999, he joined Best Buy as the president of its Internet and direct channels division. He then became the company's executive vice president of human capital and leadership and, subsequently, the executive vice president of its Customer Business Group.

After Best Buy, Walden moved to Sears, where he acted as chief customer officer and executive vice president. Afterward, he served as the president and CEO of Inversion Inc. and as chief executive officer of Activeion Cleaning Solutions.

He became managing director of Argos on 1 February 2012 before joining Home Retail Group as its chief executive officer on 14 March 2014. In 2016, it was announced that Walden would be stepping down as the CEO of Home Retail Group once Sainsbury's acquired the business.

In November 2018, Walden was hired as chairman of Holland & Barrett. In 2019, it was announced that Walden would replace Greg Hodder as chairman of Majestic Wine.

Personal life
Walden is married, has five children, and lives in Chicago.