Whitbread seats Kingfisher chief on board

Hotel and restaurant owner Whitbread has brought in the boss of Kingfisher as a non-executive director to replace Philip Clarke who's leaving to run Tesco.Ian Cheshire joins the board of the Costa Coffee and Premier Inn firm at the beginning of February, a month before Clarke takes over from Sir Terry Leahy at the supermarket giant.The 51-year-old took over at Kingfisher in 2008, since when the shares in the B&Q owner have almost doubled in price."As a serving chief executive of a large successful international consumer facing business, Ian will be able to give us valuable advice and support as we continue to grow both in the UK and internationally," Whitbread chairman Anthony Habgood said Thursday.