# Rick Cohen

> Rick Cohen is the founder, chairman and CEO of Symbotic and executive chairman of C&S Wholesale Grocers. A third-generation grocery operator and Wharton accounting graduate, he developed Symbotic around warehouse problems he encountered in distribution. His career connects family-business operations, robotics, Walmart’s automation program and a warehouse-as-a-service venture with SoftBank.

- **Role:** Chairman of the Board & Chief Executive Officer at Symbotic
- **Organizations:** Symbotic, C&S Holdings, C&S Wholesale Grocers
- **From:** Worcester, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** B.S., accounting, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Honorary doctorate, Assumption College, Honorary doctorate, Keene State College
- **Known for:** Led C&S Wholesale Grocers as the third generation of the Cohen family, becoming chairman, president and CEO in 1989., Founded Symbotic in 2006, building a warehouse robotics and software business from distribution operating needs., Led Symbotic during its 2022 public listing and expansion of the Walmart agreement to all 42 regional distribution centers.

## Career timeline

- **1974** — Graduated from Wharton and joined C&S Wholesale Grocers full time.
- **1989** — Became C&S chairman, president and chief executive officer.
- **2006** — Symbotic founding year; became chairman of predecessor Warehouse Technologies LLC in December.
- **2017** — Became Symbotic LLC president and CEO in November; CEO tenure continued until April 2022.
- **2018** — C&S CEO tenure ended in January; continued as executive chairman.
- **2022** — Symbotic public-company merger closed June 7; became public-company CEO in November.
- **2023** — Symbotic and SoftBank established GreenBox warehouse-as-a-service joint venture.
- **2025** — Symbotic acquired Walmart Advanced Systems & Robotics on January 27.
- **2026** — Symbotic announced the acquisition of Germany-based cellumation on October 13.

## Achievements

- Led C&S Wholesale Grocers as the third generation of the Cohen family, becoming chairman, president and CEO in 1989.
- Founded Symbotic in 2006, building a warehouse robotics and software business from distribution operating needs.
- Led Symbotic during its 2022 public listing and expansion of the Walmart agreement to all 42 regional distribution centers.
- Established the GreenBox warehouse-as-a-service venture with SoftBank in 2023; subsequently rebranded Exol.
- With Jan Cohen, supported Keene State College’s Holocaust studies center through a 2001 gift honoring his parents.

## Latest updates

- **2026-10** — Symbotic announced the acquisition of Bremen-based cellumation on October 13 to add its celluveyor sorting technology and strengthen its European presence.
- **2026-08** — Symbotic reported fiscal Q3 revenue of $721 million and net income of $55 million; Steve Pagliuca joined the board effective August 4.
- **2026-05** — Wharton Magazine published an interview with Cohen on May 5 covering his distribution experience, early adopters and warehouse automation.

## Links

- Website: https://www.symbotic.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rick-cohen-symbotic

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/rick-cohen
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-23