Three global companies – Best Buy, Apple, and Lululemon – recently announced new CEO appointments that will take effect later this year. In this edition of Your M&A and Corporate Partner, Connie Phelps compares the succession plans of these mega-companies and identifies lessons businesses of all sizes can use when planning for their future.
Best Buy’s Succession Plan:
Best Buy recently announced that its current CEO, Corie Barry, will be succeeded by Jason Bonfig at the end of October 2026. Bonfig will also replace Barry on the Board of Directors.
According to Best Buy’s statement, Bonfig’s selection to serve as CEO followed an extensive search that considered both internal and external candidates. In the end, the Board selected Bonfig, a 27-year company veteran who worked his way up from Inventory Analyst to his current role as Chief Customer, Product and Fulfillment Officer. Bonfig recently oversaw the creation of Best Buy’s U.S. online marketplace and scaled its advertising business, and is believed to be the right leader to implement AI across the company’s features and growth strategy.
Barry and Bonfig will work closely together in the coming months to facilitate a smooth leadership transition in October, and Barry will stay on as a strategic advisor for six additional months after she steps down as CEO.
Apple’s Succession Plan:
Apple announced that current CEO Tim Cook will become executive chairman of Apple’s Board of Directors on September 1, 2026, and John Ternus, Senior VP of Hardware Engineering, will succeed him as CEO and will also join the board.
The plan to appoint the engineer and 25-year Apple loyalist was unanimously approved by the Board of Directors. The decision may signal a shift from Cook’s business-expansion focus to a new era of hardware innovation for Apple as it continues competing in the saturated tech market.
Cook will continue to serve as CEO throughout the summer of 2026 while working alongside Ternus before the formal role change in September.
Lululemon’s Succession Plan:
Lululemon recently announced that Heidi O’Neill, a 25-year Nike veteran who most recently served as President, Consumer, Product & Brand, will join the company as its CEO on September 8, 2026. She will replace interim co-CEOs Meghan Frank and André Maestrini, who will return to their previous senior roles at the company.
Unlike Apple and Best Buy, there is no formal transition period planned with the current leadership and O’Neill, reportedly due to a non-compete agreement that is still in effect. O’Neill’s former employer, Nike, is a major competitor to Lululemon, and the two companies have a litigious history as the line between innovation and imitation blurs in the athletic apparel space.
By hiring an outside executive from such a fierce competitor, Lululemon is signaling a clear shift in its priorities and an intention to remain a household name in the saturated athletics fashion realm. With the risk of a proxy battle between founder Chip Wilson and the Board of Directors remaining a present threat, leadership decisions about the company’s direction are under heavy scrutiny.
What Can Businesses Learn From This?
Appointing new leadership can set the tone for the future of the business and must be done with care.
All three companies we analyzed today engaged in a long, interactive process to review potential candidates and compare what they offered with where the Board of Directors wanted to take the business next.
Other than a crisis situation, succession planning is best done long before the need to replace a business leader becomes dire. Planning ahead and leaving time for thoughtful consideration and a robust candidate pool can help companies find the best successor to further their business goals.
Don’t rush the transition process.
Best Buy and Apple have built in a 6-month period from announcing their new CEOs to having them formally take the helm. This helps to ensure a smooth transition from outgoing leadership and allows new appointees to learn the ropes of the role from the active CEO.
Both companies also secured support from their departing CEOs for a transition period to assist new leadership in their new roles. This supports uninterrupted business continuity and signals that the transition of leadership responsibility was intentional, not reactive.
Internal appointees can still signal major changes.
Although Best Buy and Apple both appointed CEOs from within their companies, the specific selections still reflect new priorities for each company. New AI integration and innovative engineering advancements are on the horizon from the incoming CEOs, who have worked closely with current leadership for many years.
A higher level of business continuity can be achieved when sourcing new leadership internally, but it does not necessarily mean the next CEO will simply be “more of the same.” The strategic insights and unique skills of a business leader can have a strong impact on the direction they take a company, regardless of where they are hired from.
External appointees can offer a clean slate for leadership.
Conversely, Lululemon is looking to shake up its C-Suite by hiring a leading executive from a competitor. With growing tension between the company’s founder and its Board, hiring an outside candidate as CEO may be a strategic move to gain fresh insights and a clean slate. Just as appointing internal candidates can support business continuity, external candidates can facilitate a sharper, more immediate turn to a new direction, rather than carry any baggage of the ongoing conflict into the next era of Lululemon’s growth.
Have questions about planning your business succession strategy? Contact M&A and Corporate lead Connie Phelps at cphelps@berenzweiglaw.com.