Jo Whitfield, former Co-op Food chief executive and Matalan CEO, is re-joining Asda’s board as a non-executive director.
Whitfield previously spent eight years at Asda and its George clothing brand starting in 2008, where she held various senior leadership roles across operations, e-commerce, commercial, general merchandise, and Asda Money & Mobile.
Following her time at Asda, Whitfield joined Co-op in 2017 as chief executive for food, a role she held for five years. Most recently, she served as CEO of Matalan, where she led a business turnaround strategy and refocused the company on delivering value.
Given her extensive experience in the convenience market from leading Co-op’s food business, Whitfield is expected to focus on supporting the growth of Asda Express.
Asda executive chairman Allan Leighton said: “Jo is one of the UK’s most experienced retail leaders and has a deep knowledge of the food retail, convenience and fashion markets.
“She also understands Asda’s DNA and the role this business plays in delivering value for hard-working families. We are delighted to welcome her back to Asda.”
Whitfield added: “Asda is one of the biggest names in retail and plays an important role in the daily lives of millions of customers and communities throughout the UK. It is a business that I have a strong affinity with and I look forward to working with Allan and the rest of the leadership team to help Asda get back on track.”
This move comes amid a series of recent leadership changes at Asda. Over the past month, Morrisons’ group operations director David Lepley joined as chief supply chain officer, while Liz Evans, the current head of the George clothing brand, stepped into the role of chief commercial officer for non-food and retail.
Other recent changes include Ade McKeon returning as vice president for ambient, M&S head of trade Gemma Lightbody rejoining as business unit director for impulse grocery, and Aldi’s buying director for pantry, Matt Shields, taking on the role of business unit director for core grocery.
