Former Pets chief lands key Tesco role

MATT Davies, the south Manchester-based executive, is leaving retailer Halfords to become UK and Ireland CEO of Tesco.

The former Rothschild Manchester corporate financier who had a successful stint as first finance director and then chief executive of Handforth-based retailer Pets at Home, will take up his new role with the troubled supermarket giant in June.

Mr Davies, 43, from Bowdon, who has led Halfords since October 2012, also resigned from homewares retailer Dunelm, where he was a non-executive director, so he can focus on his new challenge with Tesco.

Commenting on his departure from Halfords, he said: “My decision to leave has been very difficult. I have really enjoyed my time at Halfords, working with a great team of people across the business, helping to create and deliver a clear service-focused strategy. I am fully committed to driving the business over the next few months before I depart.”

After a disastrous 2014, which saw a succession of profit warnings and the emergence of an accounting scandal, Tesco, the UK’s largest retailer, is looking to restore past success under the leadership of former Unilever executive Dave Lewis.

Alongside Mr Davies’ appointment the group announced several strategic moves and its festive trading figures, which showed a better-than-expected result.

Sales over the holiday period were down just 0.3% on the year before. Including fuel, sales over the festive season were up 0.1%. Overall, like-for-like sales for the three months to the beginning of January were down by 2.9%, compared with 5.4% in the previous three months.

The company also announced it would be closing 43 unprofitable stores, and would look to make cuts of £250m by reorganising its management structures and cutting some overheads.

Tesco also confirmed that two of its businesses – Tesco Broadband and online entertainment service Blinkbox, will be sold to TalkTalk.