(Alliance News) - JD Sports Fashion PLC late Wednesday said Executive Chair Peter Cowgill has stepped down from the role with immediate effect following long-standing corporate governance issues that have dogged the retailer.
JD Sports said that as a result of an ongoing review of its internal governance and controls it has decided to "accelerate the separation" of the roles of chair and chief executive officer.
The athletic apparel retailer said non-executive directors Helen Ashton and Kath Smith will assume the roles of interim non-executive chair & interim chief executive officer, respectively.
Further, JD said the process to recruit a CEO remains ongoing and it will also begin the search for a new non-executive chair.
Under Cowgill's stewardship, JD saw an almost meteoric rise to become London's largest retailer by market value and entered the FTSE 100 index as a result.
However, concerns mounted over Cowgill's eight-year tenure as both executive chair & CEO, with a dual role largely frowned upon from a corporate governance standpoint. Last year, JD set out to split its chair and CEO roles and improve diversity on its board following shareholder pressure.
Earlier this year, JD and Footasylum were fined nearly GBP4.7 million for collective breaches of an interim order issued by the UK's Competition & Markets Authority during an in-depth phase two merger investigation.
"The business has developed strongly under Peter's leadership into a world-leading multi-channel retailer with a proven strategy and clear momentum. However, as our business has become bigger and more complex, what is clear is that our internal infrastructure, governance and controls have not developed at the same pace." Ashton said.
"As we capitalise on the great opportunities ahead of us, the Board is committed to ensuring that we have the highest standards of corporate governance and controls appropriate to a FTSE-100 company to support future growth," Ashton added.
The stock closed down 6.1% at 112.00 pence, the worst performer in the FTSE 100 on Wednesday.
By Arvind Bhunjun; arvindbhunjun@alliancenews.com
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