Ex-Bullocks Officer Joins Neiman Marcus

In a move that reunites a well-regarded retailing team, Terry J. Lundgren, former president of the Bullocks Wilshire specialty chain, has been named executive vice president of stores for Neiman Marcus. At the Dallas-based merchant, he will report to Allen Questrom, his former boss at Bullock’s who in September became president and chief executive of Neiman’s.

Since leaving Bullocks Wilshire on May 1, Lundgren, 36, has examined several other opportunities. According to industry observers, those included top posts at Harrods in London and Gump’s, the exclusive gift retailer.

Of nearly a dozen retailing jobs that were offered him, including some as chief executive, Lundgren chose to stick with upscale specialty retailing. “I concluded that, in terms of long-term opportunities and being associated with one of the top retailers of America in upscale products, this was the place to be,” he said.

One major attraction, Lundgren said in a telephone interview from Dallas on Wednesday, is that Neiman Marcus, unlike most other major U.S. retailers, is unencumbered by debt. The division of Neiman-Marcus Group, which is controlled by General Cinema Corp., is embarking on an aggressive program of remodeling and expansion, with two new units a year planned through the early 1990s. In his new post, Lundgren will be responsible for store management, visual presentation, and store design and construction.

Lundgren, who will begin at Neiman’s on Monday, said a key goal at the 22-store chain will be improving customer service. “We will attempt to take it to a new level and become famous for it.”

A Long Beach native, Lundgren left Bullocks Wilshire after R. H. Macy & Co. agreed to buy it from Campeau Corp., which was in the process of taking over the store’s owner, Federated Department Stores. Neiman’s appointment of Questrom, formerly chairman of Bullock’s and Bullocks Wilshire, was announced at the same time as the resignation as chairman of Richard Marcus, grandson of the company founder.