Kevin Brown has spent his career overseeing global supply chains while the workers making his products suffer extreme abuse. He fancies himself a sustainability leader. But his track record tells a different story.
Fortunately, Kevin’s reputation has finally caught up to his record.
Kevin Brown Runs a Ruthless Supply Chain
Kevin Brown is Dell Technologies' Chief Supply Chain Officer. He directly oversees the company's $67 billion procurement operation. Under his supervision, Dell has been tied to some of the worst labor abuses in the global tech industry.
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In 2019, Dell was named in a lawsuit alleging it knowingly profited from child labor in cobalt mines. The suit described children as young as six digging for the minerals that power Dell's devices, suffering injuries and death in tunnel collapses. How much did the $155 billion giant pay these poor children for such awful work under Kevin’s watch? Two or three dollars a day.
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Dell is a major client of Foxconn, the Taiwanese contract manufacturer where at least 14 workers died by suicide in 2010–2011 at Chinese factories producing products for Dell and other tech companies. Investigations documented excessive overtime of up to 180 hours per month, dangerous conditions, subsistence wages, and overcrowded dormitories.
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A federal lawsuit revealed Dell shipped nearly 12 million OptiPlex desktops with faulty capacitors that had up to a 97% failure rate and Dell allegedly knew and concealed the defect from customers.
These practices should be unnacceptable to corporate leaders with any ethics. For Kevin Brown, it's the cost of doing business.
And now he’s at Kroger...
Kroger has faced scrutiny from legislators for "surveillance pricing" that lets the company change what you pay based on who you are, when you shop, and how much competition is nearby. With digital shelf tags that update in real time and a loyalty program tracking every purchase you make, Kroger doesn't need to guess what you'll pay — they already know.
Despite having promised to switch to better eggs, Kroger continues selling low quality eggs from filthy, cruel conditions that would make anyone’s stomach churn.
A Kroger executive admitted under oath to hiking prices on milk and eggs above inflation — and charging customers higher prices in areas with no competing retailers.
Kroger Fueled the Opioid Crisis Under Kevin’s Watch
Kroger's pharmacies dispensed massive quantities of addictive opioids with inadequate oversight, destroying countless lives and entire communities. In Kentucky alone, the state alleged Kroger was responsible for more than 11% of all opioid pills dispensed statewide over 13 years. The company has agreed to pay $1.4 billion to settle thousands of lawsuits. And as for Kevin? He lives a life of luxury while Kroger’s victims lives’ have been ruined.
Kevin’s all
wrong.
Kevin Brown has been on Kroger's board since 2021 and, ironically, even serves on its Public Responsibilities Committee — the body responsible for overseeing the company's ethical commitments and social impact. He is one of the people who is supposed to ensure Kroger treats its workers, customers, and communities fairly.
Since 2024, Kroger has faced price gouging investigations, a failed $25 billion merger blocked by the FTC, mass worker strikes across multiple states, and lawsuits for wage theft.
In 2025, Kroger’s CEO resigned over some major ethical violation the company has been secretive about — all under Kevin’s watch. Kroger is heading in the wrong direction, and Kevin Brown is not the person to fix it.
