Kingfisher chairman Daniel Bernard to step down and be succeeded by Andy Cosslett
Kingfisher chairman Daniel Bernard is to retire and step down from the board at the company’s AGM in June after eight years as chairman and 11 years on the board.
He will be replaced by Andy Cosslett who will be appointed to the board as a non-executive director and chairman-designate on 1 April. Cosslett will formally take over as chairman at the conclusion of the AGM following a handover period.
Véronique Laury, Kingfisher chief executive, said: “I would personally like to thank Daniel for his support and wise advice since my appointment as CEO two years ago. His deep understanding of retail and its necessary evolution, his passion for people and his great leadership has been so important to Kingfisher, the board, the leadership team and of course, myself. He has supervised the new strategic thinking as well as the first successful year of transformation with challenge and dedication.”
Cosslett began his career was with Unilever in a variety of branding and marketing roles. He then spent 15 years at Cadbury Schweppes in senior international roles before becoming chief executive for InterContinental Hotels Group. He then served as chief executive of Fitness First from 2012 to 2015 where he was credited with a successfully repositioning of the brand. Since 2015 he has also been operating partner for Advent International and in 2016 was appointed chairman of Rugby Football Union.
Speaking about his new role, Cosslett said: “I am very pleased to be taking on this role at such an exciting time for the company and look forward to joining a very strong and diverse board.”
Laury added: “I now look forward to working with Andy, remaining as confident as ever in our ability to deliver our plan.”
