Appointments: Promotions at Shop Direct; new role for ex City chairman & more
SHOP Direct, the Liverpool multi-brand digital retailer, has strengthened its executive board with two internal promotions.
Retail finance director Greg Pateras has succeeded Mark McMenemy as group finance director following McMenemy’s decision to retire as a full-time executive after three years in the role. Pateras has been with Shop Direct for eight years.
Jon Owen has also been promoted to the executive board as group retail brands director. Owen joined the Speke-based company three years ago and has led the development of flagship brand Very.
Meanwhile, group chief operating officer Neil Chandler will take on the role of financial services CEO, succeeding Andy Hart, who has decided to leave Shop Direct for personal reasons.
Chandler, who will retain responsibility for IT and legal, has helped build significantly stronger IT and logistics capabilities since he became COO in February last year. Gareth Jones, who was recently appointed deputy CEO of Shop Direct, also takes on the role of group chief operating officer.
Alex Baldock, group CEO at Shop Direct, said: “We work hard to cultivate talent at Shop Direct. Congratulations to Greg and Jon, two home-grown rising stars, and to Gareth and Neil, both lynchpins of our transformation so far. This team can take us to the next level in our journey towards being a world class digital retailer.”
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LIVERPOOL insurance company Griffiths & Armour has announced the recruitment of a team of six former Towergate Insurance staff to its professional risks division.
The joining team, formerly of Towergate Professional Indemnity, includes Rowan Davies, Matthew Didlick, Mark Day and Charlotte Morgan. They will be joined in the new year by brokers Peter Monks and Jim Brindley.
Griffiths & Armour chief executive, Steve Bamforth said: “Our plans to create a seamless service proposition across our corporate and professions businesses make this acquisition of experience, technical capability and enthusiasm an ideal fit to our growing business. We welcome the team to Griffiths & Armour.”
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DAVID Bernstein, the former chairman of The Football Association and Manchester City FC, has been appointed as the chairman of Vanarama, the vehicle leasing company.
Bernstein will help Vanarama make the most of the opportunities presented to the sector as a result of regulatory changes by the FCA (Financial Conduct Authority) and a boom in demand from small and medium-sized businesses.
The St Helens-born businessman said: “Having seen first-hand the commitment and experience of the management team I feel confident Vanarama are on the right path to maximize opportunities within the growing UK economy.”
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MANCHESTER lawyer Steffan Groch, head of regulatory and partner at DWF, has been reappointed as chair of the UK Health and Safety Lawyers’ Association (HSLA) following the recent AGM.
Groch, who will serve for a further two years, has been a member of the HLSA since it was formed and, in his first term led the initiative to use the group’s budget to hold more events and increase the online technical resources available to members.
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MANCHESTER adviser HOW Planning has appointed Matthew Taylor as a senior planner from Rochdale Borough Council.
He has more than seven years’ experience working on residential, employment and mixed-use schemes.
Elliott Bullock, a graduate from the University of Manchester, has also joined taking the number of staff to 24.
Partner Richard Woodford said: “We are delighted to have Matthew and Elliott on board to help service our clients and our ever-increasing diverse caseload. Both appointments further strengthen our team and will help us achieve our longer term aims. This is a fantastic way to end the year.”
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FORENSIC accountancy firm Forths, which has offices in Leeds and Manchester, has made a key new hire.
The firm has added former BDO director Beverley Ibbotson to its criminal defence and fraud team. Ibbotson has previously worked for Forths, which now has a team of 35.
Tim Keeling, director and head of criminal defence and fraud at Forths, said: “Having seen a lot of growth in this area we are delighted to welcome Bev back to Forths. With over 20 years of specialising in forensic accountancy she brings a wide range of expertise and experience, and will bring a positive ongoing contribution to service our growing client base in this area.”
