Thomas Cook announce new chief executive

Thomas Cook has appointed Premier Farnell boss Harriet Green as its new chief executive, ending a nine-month search for Manny Fontenla-Novoa’s successor after string of profit warnings prompted  his departure last year.

Green, who has been at the helm of the FTSE-250 electrocomponents distributor since 2006,  will take over from Sam Weihagen, Thomas Cook’s interim chief executive, on 30 July.

Shares in the debt-laden company, which recently secured a £1.4bn refinancing package, jumped almost 10 per cent as investors welcomed the news.

Frank Meysman, Chairman said: “Harriet is an extremely successful executive with the right combination of international, business transformation and ecommerce experience that we need to take the Group forward, and build on our strong reputation and brand.”

Green graduated with a degree in medieval history before embarking on a career in engineering. A yoga enthusiast, she is married with two grown-up children. In 2010, she was awarded the OBE for services to the electronics industry.