LONDON, June 12 (Reuters) - Philippe Tible, chief executiveof Kingfisher's Castorama and Brico Depot brands is toleave Europe's No. 1 home improvement group next year, the firmsaid on Thursday.
Kingfisher said Tible will step down from the board and theexecutive team at the end of July but will remain with thebusiness until January 2015 to help with negotiations to buy MrBricolage - a 275 million euros ($374 million) dealKingfisher announced in April.
Tible is currently responsible for the group's Castorama andBrico Depot businesses, which are mainly in France but alsotrade in eastern Europe.
Kingfisher said Véronique Laury, CEO of Castorama France,and Alain Souillard, CEO Brico Dépôt brand International, willboth be promoted to the group executive team, which sits belowthe group's main Plc board.
As well as negotiating the Mr Bricolage deal the group iscurrently rolling-out a new Castorama store format in France andexpanding Brico Depot in France and other European markets.
"As we enter a new phase of our development, it is clearthat the business needs the next generation of leaders tooversee these plans," said Kingfisher Chairman Daniel Bernard.
Tible will be eligible for compensation for loss of office,though details are yet to be disclosed. Shares in Kingfisher, up12 percent over the last year, were down 0.4 percent.
Tony Shiret, analyst at Espirito Santo Investment Bank, whohas a sell stance on the stock, said Tible's exit was "badnews".
"Genuinely talented retailers have been in desperately shortsupply over the last 10-15 years. So to cast one aside seems tous fundamentally a wrong decision."($1 = 0.7345 Euros) (Reporting by James Davey; editing by Kate Holton)