Mothercare appoints new CEO
Mothercare has appointed Simon Calver as its new CEO after a four month search. Calver, who is currently chief executive of LOVEFiLM, will join the mother and baby products retailer on 30 April.
Calver succeeds Ben Gordon who left Mothercare last October following a series of profit warnings.
Having worked with LOVEFiLM since 2005 during which time it was acquired by Amazon Inc, Calver led the company’s merger with Video Island and subsequently grew the business into the UK’s third largest subscription entertainment service.
Prior to this he held senior roles at Riverdeep Inc, the educational software development firm, and Dell Computers.
Commenting on the appointment, Alan Parker, chairman, said: “Simon Calver is a highly successful business leader with experience heading multinational consumer facing organisations. His e-commerce and brand expertise will enable Mothercare to accelerate its development as a multi-channel retailer in the UK and his international perspective will be invaluable to the continued rapid expansion of Mothercare and Early Learning Centre globally.”
Calver commented: “I am delighted to be joining Mothercare and to have the opportunity to lead this iconic company as we work to consolidate its position as one of the world’s leading parenting groups. Whilst there are near term challenges ahead, I am committed to the recovery of the UK business and the accelerated growth of these aspirational brands around the world.”
