CALDOR HEAD TO EXIT
NEW YORK — Marc I. Balmuth, president of Caldor Corp. for nine years, will leave the company when his contract expires in August, the discounter said Tuesday.
The move comes a month after Caldor, reorganizing under Chapter 11, decided to withdraw a controversial $20 million executive retention bonus program.
However, Balmuth said in a statement he was leaving for “personal reasons.” He will remain with Caldor through Aug. 31 and then “take some time off with my family.” He could not be reached for comment.
The retention plan drew fire from Caldor’s equity committee for offering bonuses of up to 140 percent of base salary. The bonuses would have been payable if the executives remained at Caldor through the Chapter 11 reorganization, not based on the company’s performance during the period.
Balmuth, who earns $750,000 a year, would have received a bonus of $1.35 million under the proposed plan, half payable upon the effective date of the plan of reorganization’s and half six months later.
A spokesman for the company said Tuesday Balmuth’s decision had nothing to do with the stalled retention program and that the executive and the company agreed last September to the move.
In November, Gary Vasques resigned as Caldor’s senior vice president of marketing to join Kohl’s Corp., a regional department store chain.
In a court hearing in December, Don Clarke, chairman and chief executive officer, said Caldor needed the retention plan to keep employees from leaving the chain for more secure employment. Caldor, which filed for Chapter 11 protection on Sept. 18, is the nation’s fourth-largest discounter, with 166 stores and annual volume of $2.7 billion.
The company said it retained Herbert Mines Associates, an executive search firm, to assist in the search for a successor.
Balmuth joined Caldor as president in 1987 and served on the board since 1989. From 1985 to 1987, he was executive vice president for Venture Stores.
Caldor and the equity committee continue to negotiate the terms of a retention program agreeable to both sides. — Fairchild News Service