THIS IS NOT JUST ANY CHIEF EXEC…
MARKS & Spencer yesterday stunned the City by naming WM Morrison’s successful boss Marc Bolland as its new chief executive. The shock move was widely welcomed by investors in M&S – but Morrisons’ shareholders suffered heavy losses.
Sir Stuart Rose, who has been holding the position of executive chairman in defiance of corporate governance rules, said Dutch-born Bolland was the best candidate for the job due to his “wealth of consumer marketing experience”.
Bolland’s remuneration package and starting date are not yet known but Rose said that once Bolland is “saddled up”, he will step back to a three-day part time chairman role before he exits the group completely in July 2011.
M&S’s share price jumped 5.89 per cent to 390p but Morrisons’ stock bombed by five per cent to 281p as investors questioned the future of the supermarket following Bolland’s departure.
Bolland turned around Morrisons after its acquisition of Safeway in 2004 almost destroyed it. He already has experience of taking over businesses from high-profile leaders, having taken the top job at Morrisons from Ken Morrison, a member of the original family and a large shareholder.
Industry observers yesterday said that Bolland’s move to M&S would rattle Ken Morrison, who said in 2006 he was “not looking for someone who is coming in for three years.” That, of course, is exactly what Bolland ended up doing.
Charles Stanley’s Sam Hart said: “I don’t think anybody anticipated that Marc Bolland would be prepared to up-sticks only two-thirds of the way through his turnaround plan.” In September, Bolland, who spent part of his career at Heineken, had said: “I love Morrisons, I am happy here.”
Rose was previously said to have preferred an internal candidate, with finance director Ian Dyson, food head John Dixon and fashion head Kate Bostock all seen as front-runners. But Rose said: “We had a preference for an internal candidate if they were the right one. But I now believe we have the best.”
Yet those candidates who have been passed over may now reconsider their long-term future at M&S, analysts said. “While one massive headache has been resolved, several new ones may have been created,” one analyst said.