While the company hasnt announced a formal succession plan, its clear that Foulkes would be a leading candidate to eventually replace Merlowith an emphasis on eventually. [1], After graduating from Harvard, Foulkes briefly worked at Goldman Sachs and Tiffany & Co before leaving to earn her MBA. She left when investors made an offer to take the company private at a price shareholders couldn't refuse. Apparently, the digital team for the corporation was so spread out that it needed senior management to speak with multiple people situated in various parts of the corporation to get them to make a single change to the digital operations. She's saidshe was inspired to runto help people suffering in the COVID pandemic, but speaks in general termsabout who or what specifically triggered the decision to jump head-first into a statewide campaign. document.getElementById("contentad8853").appendChild(s); Powered and implemented by Interactive Data Managed Solutions. She makes a short, slow approachand with minimal backswing, deliberatelyrolls the ball down the center of the hardwood into the triangle of waiting pins, sparking a comeback against admittedly lackluster competition. However he does like to take on other topics involving some of his personal interests like automobiles, future technologies, and anything else that could change the world. In the past, Foulkes has commented on the importance of focus. Term-limited Mayor . Foulkes has been at the forefront of CVSs efforts to boost adherence. Besides these, it is interesting to note that Foulkes was one of the leading voices that convinced CVS Health Corporation to stop selling cigarettes and other tobacco products. from Italy and settled on Federal Hill. Foulkesgraduatedmagna cum laudefrom Harvard College in 1986 and received her M.B.A. from Harvard Business School in 1992. For example, Foulkes was the one who launched the ExtraCare card, which is CVS Health Corporations membership program that offers savings for those who shop at its stores. In early August, GoLocal reported that Helena Foulkes the former CVS executive and CEO of Hudson's Bay Company was . "It wasn't cost cutting, it was actuallyinvesting in the core tools thatallowed the business to bea great retailer," Foulkessaid. FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. The overhaul that Foulkes is leading in the retail business is about extending those gains. wid: "8853", And every time a Maintenance Choice member opts to pick up meds from a store, theres a chance shell buy a bottle of Windex or a tube of Colgate toothpaste while shes there. All the large chains across the countryfrom Walgreens (WBA) to Eckerd to Rite Aid (RAD)operated largely from the same playbook: fill prescriptions in the pharmacy in back, and in the front, sell everything from diapers to shampoo to soda. Foulkes has a good relationship withRaimondo. Lincoln Chafee took office, he named her as his top lieutenant on the state's Economic Development Corporation Board. To grow sales outside the pharmacy, Foulkes must square off with CVS/pharmacys old retail rival, Walgreens. After working on Wall Street for investment bank Goldman Sachs, and then Tiffany & Co., Foulkes returned to Rhode Island for a job at Woonsocket-based CVS in the early 1990s. Foulkes was CEO of Hudsons Bay Company from February 2018 to March 2020, where she led the most significant transformation of the business, ultimately creating a path to the successful privatization of the company. She is particularly taken with a new display for Makeup Academy, or MUA, a leading CVS store brand of beauty products. . For example, microeconomics can provide interested individuals with a fair amount of insight into the mechanics of demand and supply for particular products and services. For the record: Foulkes has made more than 140 political contributions to federal candidates since 2004, according to Federal Elections Commission filings, the vast majority to Democrats including the Rhode Island delegation. At CVS, Foulkes climbed the corporate ladder to become president of the company's pharmacy business and had enough political juice that in January 2011 when then-Gov. Through its array of standing committees and the roughly 50 visiting committees that report to them, the board probes the quality of Harvards programs and assures that the University remains true to its charter as a place of learning. 85, (Board President, 2020-21) and Helena Buonanno Foulkes 86, M.B.A. 92, (President 2021-22), trade stories about how they made it to Harvard and their most memorable experiences. Ms. Foulkes is also Director-Board of Overseers at Harvard University and on the board of 6 other companies. Likewise, macroeconomics is useful for understanding how broader economic movements can impact the businesses situated within the relevant economies. Of course theres H! says Foulkes triumphantly as she and the half-dozen execs erupt in laughter. See you back here next Saturday morning. Specifically,Foulkes said she likes California's legalization of accessory apartments as a way to increase the supply of new homes quickly. The behemoth that is CVS Health today is hardly recognizable from the regional drugstore chain Foulkes joined in 1992, soon after getting her MBA from Harvard Business School. Endorsement: Helena Buonanno Foulkes for Rhode Island governor, Former CVS executive Helena Foulkes is running for Rhode Island governor on the strength of her business background: Its about getting stuff done, Foulkes promises single term as governor if school test scores don't improve. But its done plenty of things right too. Helena Grace Foulkes (ne Buonanno; born July 18, 1964) is an American businesswoman and politician. A wave of consolidation began to sweep across the drugstore landscape in the late 1990s. Add it all up, and CVS is now the largest health carerelated company in the U.S. She first went to work for CVS, the company she is still most closely associated with, in 1992 because she liked retail and wanted to be close to Boston, where her husband worked. Over the past decade, CVS has made a series of multi-billion-dollar deals to grab a bigger piece of the growing health care industry pie. To emphasize his companys evolution, in 2014 CEO Larry Merlo changed the companys name from CVS Caremark to CVS Health. The company ranked No. [1] She rose to become the company's executive vice president and chief marketing officer. Foulkes' family moved to the East Side from East Greenwich when she was in third grade, and she attended the Henry Barnard School and then Lincoln School. He is expected to do so early next year. Foulkes had surgery and was back on the job in a matter of weeks, leading the effort to launch ExtraCare. BecauseRhode Island politics rarely features manydegrees of separation, Foulkes' sister was friends at Moses Brown withcurrent Democratic primary rival Matt Brown. She grew up in Providence, attended theprivate Lincoln School and then Harvard. As such, Foulkes is responsible for running a retailer in a less than promising environment, which is an unenviable task. More generally, drawing on its members diverse experiences and expertise, the board providescounsel to the Universitys leadership on priorities, plans, and strategicinitiatives. Helena Foulkes took the job of Hudson's Bay Co. CEO two years ago, fully intending to clean up one of retail's toughest messes. Rivers. The president of CVS/pharmacy, the companys flagship drugstore chain, is standing in the middle of an aisle packed with holiday paraphernaliaSanta hats, $25 wreaths, plastic Peanuts-branded Christmas trees, boxes of Ferrero Rocher chocolates wrapped in gold foil. [7][8][9] In her first six weeks as CEO, Foulkes was challenged with refashioning the company's business strategies given the industry's declining sales at the time. Speaking of which, Foulkes was the one who launched the Pharmacy Advisor program as well. When I left for college, I thought I would never come back, she says. })(); FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Foulkes received 33,931 votes, so the . Foulkes' biggest pitchtoRhode Island voters is that if elected, she can turn around some of the state's beleaguered public schools. In her office, Foulkes has a framed picture of herself with First Lady Michelle Obama from an event honoring CVSs tobacco exit. In June, CVS agreed to pay $1.9 billion to acquire and operate some 1,700 Target pharmacies and clinics. Creative people have bypassed gatekeepers for centuries to distribute what they wanted to share so badly. They find common ground in Houghton Library exhibition. [3], In 2015, Fortune magazine included her on its list of Most Powerful Women, citing Foulkes' role in the "$1.9 billion purchase of Target's prescription-filling businessa deal that will give CVS the most pharmacy locations in the U.S.and launching upgraded beauty and healthy food sections in many of the stores". Gina Raimondo leftfor a cabinet postin the Biden administration. She unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for Governor of Rhode Island in the 2022 election and is the former Chief Executive Officer of Hudson's Bay Company . Sergio Jimnez Amozurrutia is the CEO of Flink, a Mexican-based banking company that offers its clients a reliable technological platform from, which they can open an account within a few minutes. Just as crucially, CVS has been able to use the symbiotic relationship between Caremark and CVS/pharmacy to motivate more patients to stick to their drug regimensa top priority for the health plans and managed-care organizations that Caremark is trying to woo. Helena B. Foulkes founded BrightSpark Capitol Corp. For more, visit https://www.youtube.com/c/harvard. PROVIDENCE In the battle between the Democratic candidates for governor for the crucial Providence vote, Helena Foulkes scored some big-name endorsements on Thursday. Its an amazing product and represents hope and promise, she says, laughing. The retail stores get 71% of their revenue (or $48 billion last year) from filling prescriptions (756 million of them in 2014), something Caremark helps fuel with its 65 million members. The Board of Overseers is one of Harvards two governing boards, along with the President and Fellows, also known as the Corporation. She oversaw the launch of the ExtraCare card, a membership program offering savings to participants. In June, CVS agreed to pay $1.9 billion to acquire and operate some 1,700 Target pharmacies and clinics. Fleming questions how well known Foulkes is outside the business community, but he suspects her entry "could hurt Dan McKee a little bit'' given his efforts to establish himself as asmall-business advocate. It was before he colluded with Donald Trump to destroy the Supreme Court and more. (function() { Helena FoulkesandLindsay Chase-Lansdalehave each been insightful, admired, and valued members of the board these past five years, said Harvard President Larry Bacow. When: Wednesday, February 8. Led by Merlo, CVSs executive team decided that continuing to sell cigarettes had become untenable for a company that was simultaneously trying to sell itself as a health care giant. "For 25 years, I showed up to CVS Headquarters in Woonsocket every day, helping to build the company into the states largest. In her two years there, she said she invested in new IT systems and data tools while spinning off businesses that could be better run by others. Election 2022 update: Two governor candidates added to Nov. ballot. [3] In July 2015, Fortune magazine reported that as part of her role, Foulkes oversaw 9,600 retail stores and 18 distribution centers. Foulkes Will Make 5 Major Democrats Running for Governor in Rhode Island. Foulkes joins a 2022 Democratic field that includes state Treasurer Seth Magaziner, Secretary of State Nellie Gorbea, Luis Daniel Muoz and former Secretary of State Matt Brown. It turned out itwas thyroid cancer. The changes are aimed at burnishing CVSs image as a health-oriented company. Instead, the side of the family she picked up on most keenly was business. Foulkes left CVS in 2018 to become CEO of the Hudson's Bay Company, the holding company with roots as a 17th-century colonial fur trading empire that owns Sak's Fifth Avenue and other retailers.. In a one-on-one conversation Marty Chvez 85, S.M. [6], On February 5, 2018, Hudson's Bay Co., owner of Saks Fifth Avenue, named Foulkes its new CEO, saying it would be effective on February 19. Foulkes stands in front of the pharmacy counter at a 10,000-square-foot mock-up store on the campus of the CVS Health headquarters in Woonsocket, R.I. As an undergrad econ major at Harvard, she impressed her thesis adviser, Larry Summers, as being extraordinarily effective.Photograph by Joe Pugliese for Fortune Magazine. As the crow flies, its roughly 3,700 miles from the North Pole to the headquarters of CVS Health (CVS) in Woonsocket, R.I., just outside Providence. The drugstore chain eliminated tobacco products last yearsacrificing $2 billion in salesafter deciding that smoking clashed with its identity as a health care company. [1], In 2011, CVS made Foulkes its chief health care strategy and marketing officer, a new position created for her. "I was exhausted but I thought I just had been workingtoo much and had four little kids. I hope that by the time this article comes out, Rhode Island will have said okay to MinuteClinics.,