M&S Names Former Dixons UK Boss Bickerstaffe As Strategy Chief

(Alliance News) - Marks & Spencer Group PLC on Wednesday named Non-Executive Katie Bickerstaffe as its chief strategy & transformation director.

She was appointed to M&S's board in 2018, and was formerly the chief executive of Dixons Carphone PLC's UK arm. She will take up M&S's strategy role on April 27.

M&S Chief Executive Steve Rowe said: "Katie has been a great help to me and the wider management team in her role as a non-executive director and I am delighted that she will now be part of the executive team. Her experience in leading roles at UK food and non-food retailers and track record of delivering large-scale change will be invaluable as we accelerate our transformation."

She has also served on the board of SSE PLC as a non-executive director and has held roles with retail and consumer goods stalwarts PepsiCo and Unilever PLC.

Once a high-flying high street outfit, M&S has endured a difficult time of late.

The company in October admitted that the turnaround of its ailing clothing and home business was "behind schedule".

The unit has long been dogged in difficulty. Over the 13 weeks to December 28, a key trading period which included Christmas, the division had a 3.7% sales fall, or 1.7% on a like-for-like basis.

During the six months to September 28, revenue in Clothing & Home fell by 7.8% to GBP1.57 billion, with like-for-like revenue down 5.5%.

In November, the company appointed Richard Price, the former chief executive of F&F Clothing, Tesco PLC's fashion arm, as managing director of the clothing business.

Marks & Spencer was also relegated from the FTSE 100 index in a re-jig last September, ending a 35-year stay among London's large-cap stocks. It was a founding member of the index.

Shares in the company were 0.6% higher at 182.05 pence each in London on Wednesday afternoon.

By Eric Cunha; ericcunha@alliancenews.com

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