Bernard Cammarata to retire as the Chairman of TJX board

The TJX Companies has announced that Bernard (Ben) Cammarata has decided to retire as Chairman of the Board of The TJX Companies, after nearly 40 years of service to the company. His retirement will be effective on the date of the company's next annual meeting of stockholders on June 11, 2015. After his retirement, Cammarata will remain with the company in an advisory role as Founder and Executive Advisor. The board intends to elect Carol Meyrowitz, Chief Executive Officer of TJX since 2007 and a Director of the board since 2006, as Chairman immediately following Cammarata's retirement.

Commenting on Cammarata’s retirement, Meyrowitz said, "Ben Cammarata has helped grow TJX from its infancy to the nearly 30 billion dollars company we are today, and he has been a mentor, partner and friend to me over many years. I share his dedication to and passion for this company and consider it a great privilege to succeed him as Chairman of the board.”

Added Cammarata, “Having founded this business nearly four decades ago and after serving as Chairman of the board for 17 years, I couldn't be more convinced that Carol Meyrowitz is the right person to lead it into the future. Carol has been with the company for 33 years and as CEO for nine years, and a great deal of TJX's success is attributed to her leadership, strategic vision, and many contributions to our company.”

Ben Cammarata has been Chairman of the Board of TJX since 1999. He founded T.J. Maxx in 1976 and served as its President until 1987. At that time, he was named President and Chief Executive Office of TJX, and served in that position until 2000. He also was Acting Chief Executive Officer of TJX from September 2005 to January 2007. He also previously served as Chairman of The Marmaxx Group, the company's largest division.

Carol Meyrowitz, who joined the company in 1983, has been Chief Executive Officer of TJX since January 2007, a Director since September 2006, and also served as President from October 2005 to January 2011. She has extensive experience as an off-price executive, having previously served as Senior Executive Vice President of TJX and President of The Marmaxx Group. For several months in 2005, she was employed in an advisory role for TJX and consulted for Berkshire Partners, a private equity firm based in Boston. Meyrowitz served as President of Marmaxx from 2001 to January 2005. She also previously held senior management positions with Chadwick's of Boston and Hit or Miss, former divisions of TJX. She is also a director of Staples.