Former mayoral campaign chief Julia Leja takes over Boston Public Market as third CEO since 2015

Leadership transition at a key downtown food hub

Boston Public Market has appointed Julia Leja as its new chief executive officer, marking the nonprofit marketplace’s third CEO since it opened in 2015 above the Haymarket MBTA station. Leja succeeds Cheryl Cronin, who led the organization for nearly a decade and announced plans to retire after reaching the 10-year milestone of her tenure.

The change places a former senior political strategist for Mayor Michelle Wu into a role that sits at the intersection of small-business operations, tourism, and public-private financing. The market’s CEO oversees the Boston Public Market Association, the nonprofit that manages the indoor market, vendor relationships, programming, and fundraising.

What the market is managing now

Boston Public Market operates as a curated collection of Massachusetts-based food and farm vendors, with roughly 30 stalls that have been reported as essentially fully leased. While the market built a steady customer base in the years after opening, it also faced a sharp decline in foot traffic during the COVID-19 pandemic, mirroring challenges across downtown Boston’s retail and office-dependent corridors.

In recent years, market leadership has emphasized stabilizing vendor occupancy and diversifying demand, including efforts to attract visitors and tourists alongside regular local shoppers. The market’s funding structure has relied on a mix of vendor rents and external support, including state funding and philanthropic contributions, to cover operating costs and staffing.

Why the CEO role draws attention

The appointment highlights how Boston’s civic institutions often recruit leaders with experience navigating complex stakeholder environments. The market’s model requires coordination among vendors, customers, public agencies tied to the site’s transportation-adjacent location, and donors supporting the nonprofit’s broader mission.

That landscape has previously shaped executive hiring at the market. Cronin, who took the helm after founding CEO Liz Morningstar, also came to the role with a background in law and public affairs rather than food retail operations. Under Cronin, the market expanded its day-to-day management capacity while working to maintain vendor participation through periods of economic disruption.

Key facts at a glance

• New CEO: Julia Leja.

• Outgoing CEO: Cheryl Cronin, who announced her retirement and departure after about 10 years in the role.

• Market opening: 2015; Leja becomes the third CEO since opening.

• Scale: Approximately 30 vendor stalls, focused on Massachusetts-based food businesses.

With leadership turnover relatively limited since 2015, the CEO transition is a consequential moment for an institution that blends food retail with nonprofit stewardship in a high-visibility downtown location.

Leja’s immediate priorities have not been detailed publicly by the organization. The transition comes as downtown Boston continues to adjust to post-pandemic patterns in commuting, tourism, and retail foot traffic—factors that directly affect vendors operating in a market built around in-person shopping and daily volume.