On July 29, 2019, Michael Ladd was appointed as the Chief Operating Officer of Fred’s, Inc., effective immediately. Mr. Ladd had previously served as Chief Stores Officer since February 2019 and Executive Vice President of Store Operations since January 2018. Mr. Ladd, age 49, joined Fred’s as Executive Vice President of Store Operations in January 2018 and was named Chief Stores Officer in February 2019. Before Fred’s, Mr. Ladd served as Vice President of Stores at Barnes & Noble, Inc. with responsibility for the store and operations organizations from June 2016 through August 2016. Mr. Ladd joined Barnes & Noble from Sears Holdings Corporation, where he served as Senior Vice President and Head of Sears Retail with responsibility for the entire store and retail operations teams from December 2014 to June 2016. Upon the effectiveness of his appointment as Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Ladd resigned from his position as Chief Stores Officer at the Company.