Apple Inc. (AAPL) Director Millard Drexler To Retire

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has disclosed that it will lose a member of its board, Millard “Mickey” Drexler, to retirement this coming March.

In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) said that Drexler, CEO of J. Crew Group, Inc. since 2003, notified the company of his intent to end his stint as member of the company’s when his term ends.

“On January 16, 2015, Millard “Mickey” Drexler, 70, who has served on the Board since 1999, notified the Board of his intention to retire at the end of his current term, which will expire at the Annual Meeting. The Board has not yet nominated an individual to fill the vacancy that will be created by Mr. Drexler’s departure from the Board,” Apple wrote.

The 70-year-old Drexler is the oldest of all the members of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL)’s Board of Directors. He was a member of what many say was the inner circle of the company’s founder and legendary CEO, Steve Jobs. Drexler is also credited to be a key decision maker for the design and rollout of the company’s seminal brick-and-mortar retail stores.

Now that Drexler is leaving, Art Levinson, CEO of Calico, will be the longest-serving Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) board member having been in his position since 2000.

Other members of the Apple Board of Directors are CEO Tim Cook, Al Gore [Generation Investment Management manager and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers partner], Bob Iger [Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS) CEO], Andrea Jung [former Avon Products, Inc. (NYSE:AVP) CEO], Ron Sugar [former Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE:NOC) Chairman and CEO] and Sue Wagner [BlackRock, Inc. (NYSE:BLK) co-founder and director].

Drexler’s departure from the iPhone-maker’s Board follows Bill Campbell’s retirement last year after 17 years of being a director.

John A. Levin’s Levin Capital Strategies owned about 1.81 million Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) shares by the end of the third quarter of 2014.