Home CE Retail Howard’s Names Smith SVP/Chief Merchant

Howard’s Names Smith SVP/Chief Merchant

Howards Marina Pacifica store,png
The Howard's Marina Pacifica store

Southern California-based independent appliance retailer Howard’s has announced that former Chief Merchandising Officer Carrie Smith is returning to the company’s senior leadership team in a new, expanded role. A luxury appliance veteran, Smith has been named Senior Vice President (SVP)/Chief Merchant for the company.

Carrie Smith

Smith adds her decades of expertise and extensive background in high-quality, tech-forward brands to the company, further strengthening their commitment to growing their luxury home goods offerings.  She began her career in merchandising for Sears where she worked her way up to home appliance buyer. After more than 20 years with the company, she moved on to Pacific Sales Kitchen & Home and later, its parent company, Best Buy, where she took on the role of appliance buyer and merchant. During her time with Pacific Sales & Best Buy, Smith had the opportunity to oversee projects for homeowners, seeking custom solutions to their home fabrication and remodeling needs and working closely with top brands in the home appliance industry.

“We are thrilled to welcome Carrie back to the Howard’s family,” said John Riddle, president and CEO, Howard’s. “Her perspective, skills, and experience are ideally suited to the company at this stage of our expansion. As we grow and add additional experience centers throughout Southern California — following the recent launch of our Marina Pacifica luxury brand showroom in Long Beach — we are broadening our relationships with the iconic luxury appliance manufacturers that customers want. It is essential that our entire team is well-versed with the sophisticated, innovative, and high-performance manufacturers in our industry.”

The announcement statement points out that Smith’s experience in multi-channel retail, familiarity with prominent home appliance brands, and work with custom home projects — supporting the needs of the local design community — make her an asset to Howard’s vision for aggressive growth development.