Carrefour appoints Georges Plassat as new CEO
French supermarket giant Carrefour has appointed Georges Plassat as its new chairman and CEO. He will succeed current incumbent Lars Olofsson will stand down from the roles in June.
Currently Chairman and CEO of Vivarte group, Plassat will join Carrefour on 2 April as chief operating officer for a short transition period before being appointed CEO after Carrefour’s Shareholders Meeting on 18 June.
Following the announcement, Plassat asked for “the support of all within the company” and said he was well aware of the magnitude of the the task ahead. Carrefour has been struggling with stagnant sales in in 2011 and has said that operating profit will be down 20% compared to the prior year.
Plassat owns an 8% stake in Vivarte, whose brands include the Kookai and Naf-Naf fashion chains. Before joining Vivarte, he led Carrefour’s Spanish business for two years after a long spell at smaller supermarket chain Casino.