Kermit Crawford is a retail, health, and wellness leader who has led successful transformational change and cost-saving programs in highly competitive consumer-focused businesses. He is recognized as a board member with superb emotional intelligence and strategic decision-making skills.
Most recently, Crawford served as President and Chief Operating Officer for Rite Aid Pharmacy (RAD), a Fortune 500 company with more than 2,500 retail locations. He began his 30-year corporate career at Walgreens (WBA), the world’s largest drug store chain. He rose from pharmacist intern to Executive Vice President and President of Pharmacy, Health & Wellness, the corporation’s largest business unit. Mr. Crawford’s private equity experience includes serving as an operating partner, adviser, and consultant for Sycamore Partners, a New York-based firm specializing in retail and consumer investments.
Mr. Crawford serves as a director for three public corporations, where he shares his experience and insights on navigating today’s increasingly complex business environment. Mr. Crawford is an Independent Director and Chair of the Audit Committee for Allstate Corporation (NYSE: ALL). He also serves as a Director and member of the Talent and Compensation Committee and Chair of the Governance Committee for C.H. Robinson Worldwide, Inc. (NASDAQ: CHRW). Recently, he was appointed to the board of Visa, Inc. (NYSE: V) where he serves on the Audit and Risk and Nominating and Corporate Governance committees.
Upon receiving his pharmacy degree from Texas Southern University, Mr. Crawford began his Walgreens career as a pharmacy intern and advanced through the company ranks until his retirement in 2014. During his tenure, Mr. Crawford assumed increasing responsibilities covering all aspects of the retail pharmacy and healthcare delivery business, rising to the Pharmacy, Health & Wellness business leader.
Throughout his career, Mr. Crawford has established himself as a thought leader, innovator and executive mentor within the retail pharmacy industry and beyond. A passionate advocate for expanding patient-centered health care and elevating the pharmacist’s role in health care, Mr. Crawford led efforts that transformed the community pharmacy model from a transaction-based practice to one focused on access to affordable, quality care. In addition to his current board experience, Mr. Crawford served on the Board of Directors of LifePoint Health, a network of hospitals operating in non-urban and rural areas. The board took the organization private in 2018. His board service also extends to several non-profit organizations, including the President of The Rite Aid Foundation from 2017 to 2019, the Board of Directors for Northwestern Medicine/Northwest Region, and the Board of Trustees for The Field Museum.
His peers have recognized Mr. Crawford for his expertise and contributions to his profession. Chain Drug Review recognized him as the 2009 “Pharmacy Executive of the Year,” and in 2014 honored him with the “Lifetime Achievement Award.” Drug Store News presented Crawford with its 2014 “Pharmacy Innovator Award.” Savoy Magazine named Mr. Crawford one of the “Top 100 Most Influential Blacks in Corporate America” in 2012 and again in 2018, and Black Enterprise Magazine named him to its 2012 list of the “Top 100 Most Powerful Executives in Corporate America” and in 2018 to its prestigious list of “America’s Most Powerful Black Directors.”