Former TJX chief is named to BJ's board

Edmond J. "Ted" English, the former chief executive officer of retailer TJX Cos., who abruptly left the company in September, has been named to the board of Natick-based BJ's Wholesale Club Inc.

The appointment takes effect Sept. 27, the date of the next BJ's board meeting.

English, 53, took the reins of TJX in 2000 and shepherded the company's recovery from a plummeting stock price in the year prior to his hiring. He led the company in the critical period following the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks in which seven TJX employees were killed. During his tenure, TJX opened more than 900 stores and hired some 50,000 employees.

Still, English surprised others inside the company by walking away from the top post last year, saying the company's smaller units needed new leadership in order to grow. BJ's chief executive officer Mike Wedge said in a statement that English's long history in the retail business would help the company's management make strategic moves.
(By Keith Reed, Globe staff)

Ted English speaks to the press about how TJX would mark the anniversary of the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in which seven TJX employees died.
Globe file photo