Ron Johnson

Ron Johnson earned a bachelor's degree in economics at Stanford University and an MBA at Harvard Business School. He worked in retail at Ralph Lauren and Mervyn's before becoming vice president of merchandising at Target, where he helped introduce the design-led Michael Graves collection.

Steve Jobs recruited him to Apple in January 2000 as senior vice president of retail operations, at a time when many analysts doubted that a computer company could succeed with its own stores. Johnson developed the Apple Store concept, tested a prototype in a warehouse, and opened the first two stores, in Virginia and California, in May 2001. The Genius Bar, designed to offer face-to-face technical support, became a signature feature. The stores reached more than a billion dollars in annual sales within about two years of opening.

He left Apple in 2011 to become the chief executive of J.C. Penney, where he tried to change its pricing and store design and was dismissed in April 2013 following steep declines in sales. His Apple Store work is regarded as one of the most influential retail concepts of its time.

After the J.C. Penney experience, Johnson has returned to technology and retail ventures. In Apple's history he is remembered as the person who convinced Steve Jobs that Apple could run its own stores, and the design principles of those early locations, such as open tables and a focus on trying products, are still visible in the current Apple Store.