Dunelm Group PLC’s (LON:DNLM) chief executive John Browett is stepping down for personal reasons with immediate effect, the UK homewares retailer announced today.
Chairman Andy Harrison will fill the role on a temporary basis while the company searches for a successor.
READ: Dunelm shares jump as fourth quarter revenue bolstered by Worldstores takeover
"We will immediately start a search for John's replacement and, in the meantime, I will provide interim executive leadership, supported by Will Adderley, our deputy chairman, and Keith Down, our chief financial officer,” Harrison said in a statement.
"Dunelm remains the market leader in homewares and we have ambitious and profitable growth plans to continue building the UK's biggest and best multi-channel homewares retailer. We have a strong executive team in place to make this happen, and the board remains confident in the group's future prospects."
In late afternoon trading, Dunelm shares were 3.9%, or 23p lower at 575p.
Time to move to new challenge, says Browett
Browett said it was “time to move onto a new challenge” and that he was looking forward to the next “chapter of my career”.
He was appointed chief executive in July 2015 after leaving as boss of high street retailer Monsoon. Browett was also previously senior vice-president of Apple’s retail division and chief executive of Dixons.
Last month, Dunelm said it expects full year profits to fall following weak sales. However, the fourth quarter showed an improvement with revenue boosted by its recent acquisition of Woldstores.
In today’s announcement, Dunelm said trading in the first two months of the new financial year has “started positively, with an encouraging like-for-like sales performance”.
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