Manchester-based retailer N Brown Group, which owns brands including JD Williams, Jacamo and Simply Be, has appointed the chief executive of Tesco as its chairman elect.
Matt Davies, who will take over on May 1st, succeeds Andrew Higginson, who had served in the role for almost five years before announcing his departure last June.
Before Tesco, where he has been since May 2015, Davies spent three years as chief executive of Halfords and prior to that was finance director and chief executive of Pets at Home.
Higginson said: “Matt is a first-class retailer and brings a wealth of experience to the group. He has a proven track record of value creation across retail and online through his roles as chief executive of Tesco UK and ROI and as chief executive of Halfords and Pets at Home.
“It has been a privilege to chair the company through the past five years and I wish the business every success in the coming years.”
Davies added: “I am delighted and excited to be taking on this role. I am really looking forward to working with Angela, her team and my fellow non-executive directors to further develop and grow the N Brown business.”
He will take the reins from Higginson after Tesco’s £3.7bn takeover of Booker Group is completed.
Senior independent director Ron McMillan, who led the selection process, believes it was “clear that Matt was the best fit to be our next chair”.
“He has huge experience of retail and online businesses and will be a strong addition to the N Brown board, bringing knowledge, leadership and customer focus,” he added. “On behalf of the board, I would like to thank Andy for his considerable help and guidance over the past five years and wish him well going forward.”
