Mills Fleet Farm named a former Wal-Mart executive as its new CEO effective immediately. The appointment comes as investment firm KKR said it completed its $1.2 billion acquisition of the Brainerd-based company.
 
Duncan Mac Naughton will take over the leadership role with more than 30 years of experience in the retail sector. Previously, Mac Naughton was the chief marketing officer of Wal-Mart Canada and eventually moved over to head Wal-Mart’s merchandising operations in the U.S. in 2011. He also worked for a number of years at Eden Prairie-based grocery conglomerate Supervalu as its executive vice president of merchandising and marketing.
 
Mac Naughton also was employed under Alberton’s H-E-B Grocery Company and Kraft Foods.
 
“I am honored to lead Mills Fleet Farm, a true legacy brand in the Midwest and one that I have grown up with since my early days in Wisconsin,” Mac Naughton said in a statement.
 
New York City-based KKR announced one other C-suite change in its release. Hugh Leasum, currently a member of Mills Fleet Farm’s executive management team, would be taking over the role of chief operating officer.
 
To date, Mills Fleet Farm operates 35 stores throughout Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa and North Dakota.