New finance boss for Dunelm

Dunelm, the Leicester homewares retailer, has appointed Karen Witts as its new chief financial officer.

Witts will join the Dunelm board on June 9 succeeding Laura Carr, who will step down from the board on June 8.

Witts’ most recent position, until October 2021, was as chief financial officer of Compass Group, the FTSE 30 multinational contract food, hospitality and support services company. Prior to this she was CFO of Kingfisher Group, the international home improvement retailer, from 2012 to 2019. She also held a number of senior finance, strategic and operational roles with Vodafone Group between 2010 and 2012, and at BT Group between 1999 and 2010. She qualified as a chartered accountant with Ernst & Whinney.

Nick Wilkinson, CEO of Dunelm, said: “Karen’s vast experience across global retail and consumer-facing businesses will be hugely beneficial as we work to achieve our ambitious growth plans to become a leading multi-channel retailer and our customers’ first choice for home.”

Witts added: “It’s very exciting to be returning to the retail industry to join the Dunelm team. As the market leader in homewares, Dunelm is a brand I have admired for some time and its strong purpose, culture and expanding customer offer makes it a compelling proposition. The team has exciting plans for continued growth and I look forward to getting started.”