Kohl's fires CEO over 'personal relationship' with business partner. What we know.

Melina Khan, USA TODAY

Fri, May 2, 2025, 11:22 AM 3 min read

Kohl's fired its CEO, Ashley Buchanan, on April 30 after finding he made improper business deals with someone he had a personal relationship with, according to a filing the company made with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

The company said it terminated Buchanan, who was named the company's CEO in January, after conducting an investigation that found he directed the company to "conduct business with a vendor founded by an individual with whom Mr. Buchanan has a personal relationship," according to the SEC filing.

The Wall Street Journal, citing anonymous sources, reported the individual was a romantic partner of Buchanan's, identified as Chandra Holt. Holt had her contract with Boston Consulting Group terminated as a result of the incident, the firm said in a statement to the The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network.

Kohl's appointed its board of directors chair Michael Bender as interim CEO while the company conducts a search to replace Buchanan, it said in the filing.

Kohl's said Buchanan made "a multi-million dollar consulting agreement" between the company and a consulting firm where "an individual with whom Mr. Buchanan has a personal relationship" worked.

The agreement entailed the individual − identified by the WSJ as Holt − working as a member of the consulting team and included "highly unusual terms favorable to the vendor," Kohl's said in the filing.

The retailer said Buchanan violated the company's code of ethics policies when he failed to disclose his personal relationship.

In wake of the incident, Holt was terminated from her contract with Boston Consulting Group, the firm said in a statement to the Journal Sentinel.

"BCG was shocked to learn of the relationship between Chandra Holt and Ashley Buchanan," the firm said. "We have strict guidelines for our senior advisors to disclose any conflicts of interest."

Kohl's did not publicly identify Holt in the filing. USA TODAY has reached out to Holt's company, Incredibrew, for comment.

More: Kohl's fires CEO Ashley Buchanan for conflicts of interest. He was hired in January

Buchanan was hired in January to lead Kohl's, the Wisconsin-based retail chain.

Before that, he was the CEO of arts and crafts retailer Michael's for five years. During his tenure, he sold the company to private equity giant Apollo Global Management for $5 billion.

Buchanan also previously worked as an executive for both Walmart and Sam's Club and was on the board of directors for Macy's.