Former Chrysler exec booted from Wal-mart
December 08, 2006

In the “we called that one” department, Julie Roehm, who had been a rising star at Chrysler when she jumped ship to Wal-mart, has been fired from the nation's largest retailer, according to reports in The New York Times today.

Roehm, 35, gained fame at Chrysler for buying Dodge the sponsorship in the controversial Lingerie Bowl, a television spectacle of women in lingerie playing football. The sponsorship proved so controversial, Chrysler withdrew.

On the heels of that fiasco, Roehm landed Dodge a sponsorship at pre-Super Bowl party hosted by one of the lad magazines. The party reportedly had women dressed in animal costumes and captured in a cage being towed by a Dodge Magnum, a report not confirmed as we weren't invited.

Similarly racy marketing efforts at Wal-mart proved part of her un-doing. She turned the normally stodgy shareholder meeting into a Broadway extravaganza, according to The Times. She then oversaw production of a holiday TV ad, dubbed “Sexy” inside the company. It portrayed a couple discussing racy lingerie in front of their family. The ad drew customer complaints and was pulled.

Her hire at Wal-mart seemed an odd one from the start, not only for her unconventional marketing tactics but also for her persona. Roehm always dressed to the nines in exquisite and expensive apparel. It was hard to imagine her even setting foot in a bargain-basement Wal-mart store.

Turns out it wasn't a perfect fit.

We figured she was a goner when Black Friday retail sales showed Wal-mart down from last year while others had increases.

In riveting detail, The New York Times reports that Roehm got the boot from Wal-mart, not for the company's performance but for her alleged behavior. After an internal investigation that led to her firing, Wal-mart accused Roehm of a too-close relationship with a lower-ranking colleague, in violation of the retailer's policy forbidding fraternization with a subordinate. Wal-mart also charged her with inappropriately accepting gifts and meals from would-be advertising agencies during the company's search for a new one.

Roehm defended herself to The New York Times saying her style and persona as a change agent raised eyebrows at Wal-mart.

Question now is where will she show up next.

Posted by Michelle Krebs at 3:53 PM under Personalities | Comments (0) | digg this | Seed Newsvine