Costco Wholesale has announced an executive shakeup with chief operating officer Ron Vachris to succeed chief exec Craig Jelinek, who will step down from his role by the end of 2023.

The company said that Jelinek, who became chief exec in 2012, will remain with the company through April 2024 in an advisory role. He will continue to serve on the board and stand for reelection at the company's annual meeting in January.

Costco added that this is the culmination of a long-standing succession plan that has been in place for much of the time that Jelinek and Vachris worked together since the latter’s promotion to chief operating officer and president in February 2022.

Vachris is a veteran of the members-only big box retailer, starting as a forklift driver more than 40 years ago. He has held several major roles in the decades since, including overseeing merchandising.

Of his replacement, Jelinek said: "Costco has a very strong culture and a deep bench of management talent. I have total confidence in Ron and feel that we are fortunate as a Company to have an executive of his calibre to succeed me."

Costco currently operates 861 warehouses, including 591 in the US and Puerto Rico, 107 in Canada, 40 in Mexico, 33 in Japan, 29 in the UK, 18 in Korea, 15 in Australia, 14 in Taiwan, five in China, four in Spain, two in France, and one each in Iceland, New Zealand and Sweden.

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