Dollar General Corporation
Leadership History
4 leaders · 1977 to present
Todd Vasos is the CEO of Dollar General, in the role since 2023. The first chief executive was Cal Turner Jr., from 1977.
| Name | Role | From | To | Years in role |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Donny Lau | Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer | 2025 | Present | 1 |
| Todd Vasos | Chief Executive Officer | 2023 | Present | 3 |
| Richard W. Dreiling | Chairman and CEO | 2008 | 2015 | 7 |
| Cal Turner Jr. | Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer | 1977 | 2002 | 25 |
Dollar General is often described as America's neighborhood general store. From its Goodlettsville, Tennessee headquarters it runs more than 21,000 small-box stores that sell food, household essentials, health and beauty products, seasonal goods and basic apparel. Most stores are in rural communities and small towns, though newer formats include larger DG Market grocery-focused stores, urban DGX stores and pOpshelf, a discretionary-focused concept. The company is publicly traded (NYSE: DG), owned mainly by institutional investors, and reported $42.7 billion in FY2025 net sales.
Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer
2025 – Present
1 year (current)
A former Dollar General finance executive, Lau returned as CFO on October 20, 2025, succeeding Kelly Dilts. He leads finance and investor relations, including the FY2026 plan for .4-.5 billion of capital spending and up to million of share repurchases.
Co-hosts quarterly earnings calls with Todd Vasos and presented the August 2026 guidance raise.
Chief Executive Officer
2023 – Present
3 years (current)
Vasos first served as CEO from June 2015 to November 2022, a period that included rapid store growth, the DG Fresh self-distribution rollout and the launch of pOpshelf. He returned in October 2023 after earnings fell under his successor and launched Back to Basics: more labor hours in stores, fewer self-checkouts, lower inventory, slower new-store growth and a large remodel program.
Under his second tenure, same-store sales grew 3.0% in FY2025, net income rose to $1.51 billion, and the company raised FY2026 guidance after Q2 diluted EPS increased 33.3%.
Chairman and CEO
2008 – 2015
7 years
Dreiling became chief executive in 2008 after the company was taken private by KKR and led its return to the public market in 2009.
Dollar General expanded its store base and sales strongly during his tenure. Todd Vasos succeeded him in 2015.
Former Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
1977 – 2002
25 years
Son of co-founder Cal Turner Sr., he succeeded his father as CEO and grew Dollar General from a regional chain into a national retailer.
Expanded the store base across the U.S. over 25 years; his tenure ended after the 2001 accounting restatement.
Dollar General's main challenges are execution and customer health. Thin store staffing contributed to cluttered aisles, out-of-stocks and high shrink in 2023, and to years of OSHA citations; in July 2024 the company agreed to a $12 million settlement with the U.S. Department of Labor and committed to safety improvements. Its core shoppers are lower-income households that are sensitive to inflation, interest rates and changes in government benefits such as SNAP. Competition is rising from Walmart's expanding delivery reach, Amazon's rural same-day push, and Family Dollar, which Dollar Tree sold to Brigade Capital and Macellum Capital in July 2025. Tariffs and higher wages also pressure costs.
Todd Vasos served as CEO of Dollar General from 2015 to 2022 and was reappointed CEO in October 2023. During his initial tenure, Vasos led the addition of 7,000+ stores, launched DG Fresh and DG Digital, grew annual sales by over 80%, and created tens of thousands of jobs.
Jeff Owen served as CEO from November 2022 to October 2023, having spent nearly three decades at Dollar General in store operations and COO roles, before stepping down during a period of macroeconomic supply chain headwinds and margin pressure.
Rick Dreiling led Dollar General through its transformative private-equity turnaround under KKR, executed its highly successful 2009 NYSE Initial Public Offering, standardized store operations, and positioned Dollar General as a premier discount retailer.
Cal Turner Jr., son of co-founder Cal Turner Sr., led Dollar General for 25 years as CEO. He took the company public in 1968, grew the store footprint from a regional chain into a national leader with over 6,000 stores, and established the company's philanthropic literacy foundation.
Michael Calbert serves as Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dollar General. A veteran private equity investor and former partner at KKR who led the 2007 buyout of Dollar General, Calbert has guided board strategy and capital allocation for over 15 years.
Key executive leaders include Kelly Dilts (Chief Financial Officer), John Garratt (former CFO/President), Emily Taylor (Chief Merchandising Officer), Steve Deckard (Executive VP of Store Operations), and Rod West (Executive VP of Supply Chain).
Dollar General operates under the foundational corporate mission: 'Serving Others', dedicated to serving customers with value and convenience, serving employees with career development, and serving communities through literacy and hunger relief.
Dollar General is one of the top internal promotion employers in American retail, with more than 75% of store managers and thousands of corporate and distribution supervisors starting their careers as entry-level hourly store associates.
Todd Vasos serves as CEO. He originally led the company during its massive hyper-growth phase. In 2022, he retired and Jeffery Owen took over. However, after disastrous financial results and massive safety violations, the board panicked and aggressively brought Vasos back out of retirement in 2023.
Compare executive leadership tenures and strategic transitions
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