On December 31, 2016, Tom Sullivan, the founder and former CEO of Lumber Liquidators (NYSE:LL) resigned. Mr. Sullivan built an amazing business over the last two decades, and is a genius at getting people in the doors and selling floors. However, once the company hired Jeffrey Griffiths to guide the firm through its initial public offering, Sullivan's position became more titular than functional as he served as a figurehead and cultural leader. As LL became a publicly traded company, he gradually stepped away from operations until 2015 when in the midst of the 60 Minutes/formaldehyde debacle, former CEO Rob Lynch unexpectedly stepped down. LL was in crisis mode, and returning to the core principle of selling "Good Wood at Good Prices" was its reflexive response. Therefore, Sullivan was brought back in as CEO to help right the ship. However, running a public company, answering to investors on a quarterly basis and explaining incremental changes in margins and comp sales is a real pain for a guy who excels at building businesses.
