Patisserie Valerie appoints former Starbucks VP as changes gather pace

Troubled cafe group Patisserie Valerie has recruited a former European vice-president of Starbucks to strengthen its new commercial team.

The business is being overhauled in the wake of financial difficulties that were revealed in October. Chief executive Paul May and finance director Chris Marsh have departed while several investigations are ongoing about the reasons for the accounting black hole the company had.

Rhys Iley has joined as group commercial director, appointed by new chief executive and turnaround specialist Steve Francis. He joins interim chief financial officer Nick Perrin in a new-look management team.

Iley had six years in senior roles at Starbucks, and in an internal email published by The Caterer, Francis told staff “you can expect us to put more flair and energy into our coffee offering as a priority”.

Previously Iley spent 15 years with Marks & Spencer before eight years with Boots, mostly as a director of its Irish business.