Retail briefs

Former Wal-Mart president and ceo Bill Fields has been appointed chairman and ceo of Factory 2-U, the 261-unit off-pricer of apparel and domestics. He replaces Mike Searles, who in August announced his plan to resign from the company after four years.

Fields was president and ceo of Wal-Mart Stores from 1993-1996. His was a classic Wal-Mart rise through the ranks, starting with a job as assistant store manager in 1971. When he left, Wal-Mart was a $70 billion company with more than 2,000 stores.

Fields exited Wal-Mart for a position as chairman and ceo of Blockbuster Entertainment Group, which lasted only one year. In 1997 he became president and ceo of Hudson's Bay Company. Two years later, he became chairman and ceo of Apec China Asset Management Ltd., a firm that helps U.S., Canadian, Central and South American companies enter into sales, marketing, distribution and production relationships in the People's Republic of China.

In other news, Factory 2-U also created the new position on its board of lead director and named Ronald Rashkow to fill it. A director since 1997, Rashkow has been a principal at investment banking firm Chapman Partners LLC since 1995.

The Kroger Co., parent of Fred Meyer Stores, has named Darrell Webb president of the 133-unit food/general merchandise/fine jewelry chain. Webb, who has 22 years with Fred Meyer and Kroger, since 1999 has served as president of Quality Food Centers, a regional Northwestern grocery chain. Webb was previously group vp of national procurement for Kroger, where he was responsible for integrating buying and merchandising strategies across the company.