Crawshaw appoints Lidl exec as new CEO
MEAT retailer Crawshaw has appointed the former chief operating office of Lidl as its new CEO.
Noel Collett, who spent 16 years with German discounter Lidl, will take up the role in March next year.
He has held a number of senior leadership roles in the UK and Germany, and for the past 12 years has served as Lidl’s chief operating officer for the UK business. He’s been widely credited as an instrumental figure in transforming Lidl from a low-cost brand to a high-quality value retailer during a decade of rapid sales growth. He has also been responsible for overseeing the Lidl portfolio growth from 200 stores to over 600 stores generating annual sales of over £4bn, whilst leading an expanding workforce of 14,000 employees.
Richard Rose, Crawshaws chairman, said: “We are pleased to announce today the appointment of Noel Collett as our chief executive officer from 1st March 2015. Noel brings a wealth of value retailing experience along with expertise in business strategy, brand development and business transformation during periods of rapid portfolio and sales growth.
“We are excited by Noel’s appointment and look to the future with great confidence as the business embarks on a period of accelerated store expansion throughout the UK.”
Collett added: “The Crawshaw business model is unique with a fantastic proposition and the company has very ambitious growth plans for the future. I am really looking forward to joining a great team and I am very excited about getting started.”
The South Yorkshire headquartered business plans to accelerate its store opening programme and have an estate of 200 shops within eight years.
