Jack Sinclair

Chief Executive Officer Sprouts Farmers Market

Last Reviewed: September 29, 2026

Executive Summary

Jack Sinclair has been Chief Executive Officer of Sprouts Farmers Market, the Phoenix-based specialty grocer, since June 2019. He has spent his career in grocery. It began in Glasgow, took him through 14 years at Safeway PLC in the UK and eight years running Walmart’s U.S. grocery business, and continued at 99 Cents Only Stores, where he was chief merchandising officer and then chief executive. At Sprouts he chose a narrow target: shoppers focused on health and new products, not the whole grocery market. He also moved the chain to smaller stores. Sprouts reported $8.8 billion in net sales for 2025 and had 490 stores in 25 states by mid-2026. In September 2026 the company announced that he will hand the chief executive role to president and COO Nick Konat on 4 January 2027 and become executive chairman.

Career Highlights

• Chief Executive Officer and a director of Sprouts Farmers Market since June 2019.
• Sprouts reported 2025 net sales of $8.8 billion, up 14% on 2024, and opened 37 stores that year.
• Named in September 2026 to become executive chairman from 4 January 2027, as part of a planned CEO succession.
• Executive Vice President of Walmart’s U.S. Grocery Division from 2007 to 2015, with responsibility for all aspects of grocery across more than 4,000 stores.
• Chief Executive Officer of 99 Cents Only Stores from 2018 to 2019, after three years as its chief merchandising officer.
• Director of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s head office board since January 2025.

Professional Journey

Sinclair studied economics and marketing at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow. According to a 2025 profile in The Robin Report, he started in grocery by stocking shelves in Glasgow. He spent 1990 to 2004 at Safeway PLC in London, in senior management roles covering operations, merchandising and marketing for more than 450 Safeway supermarkets and convenience stores across the UK.

In December 2007 he became Executive Vice President of Walmart’s U.S. Grocery Division, leading its entire U.S. grocery business across more than 4,000 stores. Sprouts described that period as one of substantial growth driven by local assortment and fresh food. He left Walmart in 2015 and joined 99 Cents Only Stores, the discount retailer with more than 350 locations, as chief merchandising officer in July 2015. He was promoted to chief executive in February 2018. From 2017 to 2019 he was also a director of The Hain Celestial Group, a maker of organic and natural products.

Sprouts appointed him chief executive and a director effective 24 June 2019, after a search run by Herbert Mines Associates. At the time the company described its purpose as helping every person eat healthier and live a better life. In interviews he has set out a deliberately narrow strategy. In his words, the company goes after about $200 billion of spending, “which means we’re ignoring $1.2 trillion” of the wider grocery sector. New stores are about 23,000 square feet, down from 30,000 or more. The chain rotates in around 7,100 new items a year and uses “New for You” areas in stores to try out products from emerging brands. He has also said he is not especially excited about technology inside a food store.

Sprouts’ results over his tenure show the growth. The company reported 2025 net sales of $8.8 billion, 14% higher than in 2024, with 7.3% comparable store sales growth and 37 new stores, ending the year with 477 stores in 24 states. By 28 June 2026 it had 490 stores in 25 states.

On 1 September 2026 Sprouts announced a planned leadership transition. Nick Konat, president and chief operating officer since 2022, will become CEO and join the board on 4 January 2027, and Sinclair will become executive chairman. Sinclair said the board had spent considerable time on succession planning and that he would support Konat through the handover.

Outside the company he has served on the board of FMI - The Food Industry Association since 2020. He was appointed to the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco’s Los Angeles branch board in January 2021 and moved to the bank’s head office board in January 2025.

Education

University of Strathclyde

Bachelor’s degree, Economics and Marketing