Former Asda chief Roger Burnley is set to join the board of Marks & Spencer.
From 1 December, he will take on the role of a non-executive director at the high street staple, shareholders were told on Thursday.
Yorkshire-based Mr Burnley, a seasoned retail professional, led rival Asda from 2017 until 2021, departing the company after its £6.8 billion acquisition by the Issa brothers and TDR Capital.
Prior to his stint at Asda, he served as retail operations director at Sainsbury’s and currently holds a non-executive director position at Pets at Home. Mr Burnley originally comes from Dewsbury and is a lifelong Huddersfield Town fan.
He is the latest supermarket heavyweight to join M&S , following the departure of former Sainsbury’s chief Justin King earlier this year after some six years.
This latest appointment comes after a challenging year for Marks & Spencer, which suffered a significant cyber attack that resulted in a six-week shutdown of online sales.
The company estimates the attack has cost them around £300 million.
On his appointment, Mr Burnley said: “M&S is a much-loved brand which I have always admired as setting the standard in UK retail, and it is a privilege to be joining such an engaged board.
“Much progress has been made through the reshaping for growth strategy, but there remains so much opportunity, and I am looking forward to supporting the leadership team to capitalise on that in the years ahead.”
Archie Norman, the chairman of M&S, said: “Roger brings extensive experience in the food retail industry and supply chain transformation which will be invaluable as we enter the next phase of our plan to reshape M&S for growth.”
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