Boxed has tapped former Amazon executive Prentis Wilson as its first president.
Founded in 2013, New York-based Boxed delivers warehouse club products direct to consumers. “Boxed brings convenience and savings to on-the-go consumers who don’t have the time, means, or patience to shop at a brick-and-mortar big box club, all with no membership fees,” according to the company, which offers a curated product selection in categories like household staples, health and beauty supplies, office pantry items, groceries, and organic and green products.
Wilson most recently served as VP and GM of Amazon Business, a global division he created and grew to more than $10 billion in annual sales in less than four years. Prior to joining Amazon, Wilson led Cisco’s global sourcing and procurement operations. His experience also includes 12 years at Honeywell International, where he served in a variety of engineering, purchasing and manufacturing operations roles.
“In a rapidly evolving industry, we’ve been able to grow from a technology startup selling online bulk groceries to a full-service retail partner also offering software and actionable data insights,” said Chieh Huang, Boxed co-founder and CEO. “Prentis will help us in scaling this operation, bringing years of insight from a strong player in the e-commerce landscape.”
Wilson will be charged with accelerating overall company growth by focusing on the customer.
“Boxed is an innovative company that identified and capitalized on a real opportunity in the grocery space,” said Wilson. “I’m super excited to join Boxed, where I see massive potential for its end-to-end platform to deliver an industry-best shopping experience for customers, as well as unrivaled value for vendors.”
Wilson is the latest in a series of senior leadership hires at Boxed. It recently welcomed CFO Rhonda Ramparas, an 18-year veteran of Fortress Investment Group. Other key hires include VP of Growth Seiya Vogt and VP of Product Andrea Chesleigh.
Boxed’s private label, Prince & Spring, saw record sales in the first quarter of 2019, while May was the brand’s highest-ever month in revenue. Last August, Boxed raised an additional $111 million in Series D funding, which the company has used to ramp up fulfillment center automation and generate awareness in priority local markets.
