Staying loyal to one company for decades feels like a career strategy of the past—but it’s paid off for Ikea’s incoming CEO Juvencio Maeztu, who stuck with the company for 25 years. He started off as a store manager in his early 30s—and has slowly worked his way up to the coveted throne of the global retail titan.
“I feel deeply grateful, humble and responsible for the trust and confidence placed in me. Working with [outgoing CEO] Jesper Brodin for the past seven years has been a true privilege,” Maeztu wrote in a recent LinkedIn post. “The future excites me. We have a strong foundation, a clear direction, and nearly 170,000 amazing colleagues around the world.”
This November Maeztu will ascend to Ikea’s helm, joining an exclusive cohort of leaders who stuck it out and scaled the ranks of their businesses to the CEO spot. And it includes the Ikea CEO he’s replacing, Brodin, who has served 30 years at the company and worked his way up from being his boss’ assistant. Walmart leader Doug McMillon similarly dedicated 30 years of his life rising from a warehouse worker to the most powerful job at the $765 billion business.
Just like Brodin and McMillon, Maeztu’s start at the furniture giant that reeled in $52.6 billion in total sales last year was far from glamorous. However, in those moments on the shop floor, he often got to rub shoulders with the late Ikea founder Ingvar Kamprad.
“I have been dozens of times with Ingvar on the shop floor starting at five in the morning in the loading area and finishing at 10 in the evening with a hot dog,” Maeztu told the Financial Times. “The important thing is that we all carry Ingvar’s spirit, and this I feel very loyal to.”
After staying committed for a decade, he finally reached the C-suite in 2012—and in just a few short months, he will have summited the company’s corporate hierarchy.
Fortune reached out to Ikea for comment.
Maeztu’s career trajectory: climbing the ranks from store manager to CEO
From his 25 years of service at Ikea, Maeztu knows the ins-and-outs of the brand that will be essential in helping him lead the retail giant. The 57-year-old Ikea devotee is the first non-Swede to lead the European retail giant—a leadership leap that showcases that Maeztu is the right fit to helm the company. He earned the top spot due to his “purpose-driven, entrepreneurial leadership” and extensive store experience—garnered through decades of leading Ikea’s international locations, the business says.
Maeztu started off as the manager of the Alcorcon store in Madrid in 2001, also directing the Ikea Sevilla location in 2003. While his salary in the role isn’t widely reported, store managers in Spain generally make around €22,000 to €35,000 (about $25,000 to $40,000) annually, according to an analysis from Glassdoor.
Maeztu then transitioned into a more administrative role as the country HR manager for both Spain and Portugal—a position that was close to home, as the incoming CEO was raised in the Spanish city of Cádiz. After a brief stint in leading those workforces, he switched back to a managerial position for London’s flagship Wembley store in 2009. Just a few short years later, he would finally break into the C-suite.
Maeztu has been shadowing Ikea’s current CEO Jesper Brodin for 7 years
In 2012, Maeztu became the CEO of Ikea India, leading the establishment of operations in the country for six years. At this point, he had worked across four countries and two continents, building a name for himself as a diversified leader. Then, the next big break came when he became deputy CEO and CFO of Ikea and its franchisee holding company: Ingka Group.
For the past seven years, he’s worked alongside 56-year-old Brodin in navigating the affordable furniture chain through the storms of COVID-19 lockdown and rising international tensions.
“We’ve been riding through quite some storms together—pandemic, geopolitical issues, war, etcetera,” Brodin told Reuters. “So in a way I feel proud of the things we have achieved but also super confident that the Ikea house is in good order and we’ll be able to take off for the future with Juvencio.”
Maeztu will now become Ingka’s chief executive, leading around 500 Ikea stores across 31 countries—encompassing about 80% of the retail brand. To prepare for the position, he’s setting out on a “listening tour” of its large locations around the world, starting off in Asia. His success story is one for the books, and his next feat will be helping turn around the company’s weaker net profit and revenue from last year.
“I am fully determined to make Ikea grow and to really be relevant for many millions more consumers around the world,” Maeztu told Reuters.
