Outgoing Pier 1 CEO paid $6.8 million last year, holds $12.8 million in stock

Former Pier 1 Imports CEO Alex Smith received compensation worth $6.8 million in his final year at the helm of the Fort Worth-based retailer, according to the company’s annual proxy statement filed Thursday.

Smith, who joined Pier 1 in 2007 and led a turnaround of the retailer following the Great Recession, retired at the end of the year. At the time of his departure, the company said he would be due a lump-sum pension payout of about $24 million during this fiscal year.

He also holds 1.9 million shares of Pier 1 stock, or 2.25 percent of outstanding shares, worth approximately $12.8 million at this week’s trading price, according to the proxy.

In April, Pier 1 named Alasdair James, 46, the former president of Kmart, as its new president and chief executive officer. He started his new job on May 1.

According to securities filings, James will be paid a base salary of $1 million a year, and received a $300,000 signing bonus. Also, when he started with Pier 1 last week, he received stock options worth $1 million, with a ten-year term, and restricted stock grants worth $2.5 million, with some that vest over time and others awarded based on performance.

Smith’s compensation puts him among the top 40 highest-paid executives of public companies in North Texas, according to a database compiled by the Star-Telegram.

Like other retailers, Pier 1 has been struggling to adjust to the movement of shoppers online and away from brick-and-mortar stores. Pier 1 continues to operate more than 1,000 stores in North America, but said in March that it plans to close about 100 stores over the next two years.

This story was originally published May 11, 2017 at 12:52 PM with the headline "Outgoing Pier 1 CEO paid $6.8 million last year, holds $12.8 million in stock."