Wednesday November 18, 06:21 PM
Marks and Spencer appoints Dutchman to head retailer
LONDON (AFP) - British clothes-to-food retailer Marks and Spencer (LSE: MKS.L - news) on Wednesday announced the appointment of Dutchman and supermarket boss Marc Bolland as its new chief executive.
In reaction, M&S shares soared to the top of the London stock market as investors applauded the appointment.
Bolland, 50, credited with reviving the fortunes of British supermarket chain Morrisons since his appointment there as chief executive in 2006, will replace Briton Stuart Rose at the start of 2010, M&S said in a statement.
Rose, who combines his chief executive role with that of chairman of M&S, will go on to act as part-time chairman of the group until mid-2011.
Many shareholders hit out at Rose for last year taking on the role of chairman in addition to being chief executive, claiming it compromised the group's leadership.
"Marks and Spencer Group plc today announces the appointment of Marc Bolland as its new chief executive," the retailer said in a statement.
"He will take up his position in the New Year at a time and on terms to be confirmed."
Rose was parachuted into M&S as chief executive in May 2004 to fend off a 9.1-billion-pound -- or 400 pence per share -- takeover approach by British tycoon Philip Green.
Rose turned around the group's fortunes following an overhaul of the store lay-outs and product ranges but the company has seen profits slide during the financial crisis.
"I am delighted that Marc is to be M&S' next chief executive," Rose said on Wednesday.
"He brings a wealth of consumer marketing experience and has made a great success of his time at Morrisons. We very much look forward to welcoming him and working together."
Bolland, previously a chief operating officer at Dutch brewing giant Heineken (HEIA.NX - news) , expressed his pleasure at being offered the chance to lead "one of the world's great brands."
In response, the share price of M&S soared 5.89 percent on Wednesday to finish at 390 pence, topping the FTSE 100 index of leading companies, which slid 0.07 percent to close at 5,372.1 points.
In contrast, Morrisons slumped to the bottom of the index as it dropped 4.94 percent in value to 280.9 pence
"The decision to appoint Marc Bolland has been enthusiastically received by the market, and rightly so," said Paul Mumford, senior fund manager at Cavendish Asset Management.
He added: "M&S' food division is by far the weakest and most challenging half of the business, having struggled to define and validate its offering for recessionary Britain.
"Bolland's achievements at Morrisons inspire confidence in his ability to realise M&S' potential market share within this area."
M&S currently has more than 600 British stores, and another 295 branches are dotted around the world.
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