Marks & Spencer Group PLC (LON:MKS) has appointed the former boss of Dixons Carphone Plc's (LON:DC) UK and Ireland business to its board ahead of an expected announcement on mass store closures.
Katie Bickerstaffe, who stepped down from the electrical goods chain in April, will join M&S as a non-executive director.
Bickerstaffe left Dixons Carphone to take up a new role as the boss of the energy supplier to be created by the proposed merger of SSE plc’s (LON:SSE) retail division and Npower.
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M&S has also taken on Pip McCrostie, a former member of Ernst & Young’s global executive team, as a non-executive director.
McCrostie will also join the audit committee and Bickerstaffe will join the remuneration committee.
The appointments will be put forward for election by shareholders at the annual general meeting on July 10.
M&S chairman shakes up board
“As we embark on the first phase of our transformation programme we are building a cohesive and engaged board with deep and relevant skills in retail and business change,” said new chairman Archie Norman.
Norman has been shaking up the board since joining M&S last September, resulting in the departure of Andy Adcock, the boss of the upmarket food halls, and marketing chief, Patrick Bousquet-Chavanne.
Hundreds of store closures expected
M&S is expected to soon announce the closure of hundreds of stores as part of a major restructuring under chief executive Steve Rowe.
Rowe is looking to reduce the company’s shopfloor space devoted to its struggling clothing ranges as UK bricks and mortar retailers come under pressure from a shift towards online shopping and a weaker consumer confidence.
M&S reports its full year results on Wednesday with analysts expecting pre-tax profits of £573mln, down from £614mln in 2017. Clothing and home like-for-like sales are forecast to drop 1.1% while food sales are anticipated to fall 0.2%.