Walmart.com CEO Marc Lore addresses 'frustration and tension' between him and the company's head of stores

Business Insider

Walmart e-commerce CEO Marc Lore, right, discusses tensions with the company's head of stores.

• Walmart e-commerce CEO Marc Lore on Monday addressed "frustration and tension" between himself and Greg Foran, the company's head of stores.
• "Greg's a great operator, and they're generating a lot of cash," Lore said during a live interview at Recode's CodeCommerce conference in New York. "Over on the e-commerce side, we're investing in it, we're losing money, and we're taking a bet on the future."
• He said the tension provides a diversity of thought and is "not unhealthy in any way."
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Walmart e-commerce CEO Marc Lore on Monday addressed "frustration and tension" between him and Greg Foran, the head of the company's physical stores.

"Greg's a great operator, and they're generating a lot of cash," Lore said during a live interview at Recode's CodeCommerce conference in New York. "Over on the e-commerce side, we're investing in it, we're losing money, and we're taking a bet on the future. A lot of the time those don't mesh as seamlessly as you might hope they would, so I'm not surprised by it. I understand the frustration and the tension."

His comments marked the first time that Lore has publicly addressed his relationship with Foran since Recode's Jason Del Ray reported in July on rising tensions between the two executives.

Lore went on to say that he has "learned a ton" working with Foran and that he appreciates the diversity of thought between them.

"I have much more appreciation for the store business and I think there's a real future with brick-and-mortar stores, specifically for Walmart," he said.

"That tension, I would argue, is actually good and it's not unhealthy in any way," he said. "And we're aligned on the strategy going forward."

In response to a question about his tenure at Walmart, Lore said he plans to fulfill a commitment he made in 2016 to stay at Walmart for a full five years.

"I committed to the board and [Walmart CEO] Doug [McMillon] and said I would be there five years," he said. "I'll be there five years."

Lore's five-year commitment ends in 2021.