Arthur C. Martinez is a businessman, former CEO of

Sears Sears, Roebuck and Co. ( ), commonly known as Sears, is an American chain of department stores founded in 1892 by Richard Warren Sears and Alvah Curtis Roebuck and reincorporated in 1906 by Richard Sears and Julius Rosenwald, with what began a ...

, who is best known as the person who led a turnaround of Sears, Roebuck, and Company in the 1990s. Prior to joining Sears, Martinez worked for several companies, including

RCA Records RCA Records is an American record label currently owned by Sony Music Entertainment, a subsidiary of Sony Corporation of America. It is one of Sony Music's four flagship labels, alongside RCA's former long-time rival Columbia Records; also A ...

. He entered the retail business in 1980 when he became the chief financial officer for

Saks Fifth Avenue Saks Fifth Avenue (originally Saks & Company; colloquially Saks) is an American luxury department store chain headquartered in New York City and founded by Andrew Saks. The original store opened in the F Street shopping district of Washington ...

. In 1992 Martinez became the head of the Sears Merchandise Group and three years later he became the chief executive officer of 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 is best known for changing the company's marketing strategy to focus on women as well as men. Martinez retired in 2000, although he continues to serve on the boards of directors for several businesses. He graduated from

New York University Tandon School of Engineering The New York University Tandon School of Engineering (commonly referred to as Tandon) is the engineering and applied sciences school of New York University. Tandon is the second oldest private engineering and technology school in the United Sta ...

with an undergraduate degree and also received an MBA from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of high ...

.http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1993-12-25/business/9312250083_1_sears-merchandise-group-chairman-arthur-c-martinez-family-footwear Articles.chicagotribune.com In 1995, Arthur Martinez was honored with an

Edison Achievement Award Edison Awards is an American company that runs an annual competition honoring excellence in innovation in a broad range of categories. Company The Edison Awards were established by the American Marketing Association in 1987 and has been an in ...

for his commitment to innovation throughout his career.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martinez, Arthur C. Polytechnic Institute of New York University alumni Harvard Business School alumni Living people 1939 births American retail chief executives Sears Holdings people People from New York City