Asda appoints former Morrisons boss as chief executive as sales struggle
Source: The Guardian ·
David Potts to take over immediately, as executive chair Allan Leighton steps back to non-executive strategic roleBusiness live – latest updatesAsda has appointed the 69-year-old former boss of Morrisons, David Potts, as chief executive with immediate effect as it continues to struggle to lift sales.The UK’s third largest supermarket said that 73-year-old executive chair Allan Leighton, who has…
From the source
Asda has appointed the 69-year-old former boss of Morrisons, David Potts, as chief executive with immediate effect as it continues to struggle to lift sales. The UK’s third largest supermarket said that 73-year-old executive chair Allan Leighton, who has been running the business since 2024, would now step back to a non-executive role focusing on “the long-term strategic agenda for the business”. Potts, who began his career on the shop floor at Tesco aged 16 and worked at the UK’s biggest supermarket for decades eventually heading its UK business, went on to become chief executive of Morrisons between 2015 and 2023. He left after the supermarket group was taken private by US investment house Clayton, Dubilier & Rice in 2021. Asda and Morrisons are struggling as they face heavy competition and high levels of debt. Aldi is poised to overtake Asda to become the UK’s third-largest supermarket, with about one percentage point separating them. Asda’s sales fell by 0.5% in the three months…
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