UPDATE: Punch Taverns Names M&S's Dyson CEO
06 May 2010 - 2:01AM
Dow Jones News
U.K. pub group Punch Taverns PLC (PUB.LN) Wednesday named Marks
& Spencer Group PLC's (MKS.LN) finance director Ian Dyson as
chief executive.
Dyson, aged 47, will leave the retailer on a date yet to be
agreed, to replace Giles Thorley, who announced his intention to
leave Punch Taverns earlier this year.
No details on his leaving date were revealed, though M&S
said he was committed to ensuring a smooth handover.
"Although the timing of an announcement of this sort is never
perfect, my background in leisure makes Punch a very exciting
opportunity and one I couldn't ignore," Dyson said in a
statement.
A spokesman for Punch said Dyson had a six month notice period
at M&S and is negotiating a leaving date. He added that while
Dyson's terms of emplyment weren't being disclosed, his salary and
bonus potnetial would be less than at M&S and he was in effect
taking a pay cut to join Punch Taverns.
Still, Dyson's resignation was no surprise to Shore Capital
analyst Kate Calvert, who said a move elsewhere was likely after he
failed to land the top job at M&S.
"We expected him to go," she said. "He is ambitious."
Dyson joined M&S as finance director in June 2005 but failed
to get the chief executive's role, which instead went to Marc
Bolland, formerly of William Morrison Supermarkets PLC
(MRW.LN).
"Ian has a deep understanding of the retail and leisure sector
as well as a strong track record of driving operational performance
having worked in some of the U.K.'s leading businesses," Punch said
in a statement.
Dyson is a qualified chartered accountant and formerly served as
finance director of bingo and gaming company Rank Group PLC
(RNK.LN). Before that, he was financial controller of hotelier and
gaming company Hilton Group. He wasn't immediately available to
comment further on his new appointment.
Punch shares jumped 1 penny, or 1.4%, to 87 pence on the news,
having traded lower for much of the day after a downbeat update
from rival JD Wetherspoon PLC (JDW.LN).
Dyson joins Punch at a difficult time for the pub company.
Thorley is stepping down from Punch at just 42 years of age after
nine turbulent years at the helm.
Like most pub companies, Punch has faced a difficult few years,
as the recession hit spending in pubs particularly hard. Punch's
huge debt also meant it had less flexibility to respond to the
downturn than its rivals.
After joining Punch in 2001, Thorley oversaw the rapid expansion
of Punch from an estate of 4,500 pubs in 2003 to over 9,500 by
2006. This included the purchase of the Spirit pub group for GBP2.7
billion, financed largely through debt.
This rapid expansion, and the accumulation of huge debts that
went with it, while lauded at the time, has since been heavily
criticized.
Under Thorley, Punch's share price rose rapidly to reach a peak
of nearly 1400 pence in the summer of 2007. It has since plummeted
as first the credit crunch and the recession hit confidence in its
business model.
Meanwhile, Dyson's departure is unwelcome news for M&S's new
CEO, coming in Bolland's first week in the job. An M&S
spokeswoman said no timetable has yet been set for recruiting a
replacement for Dyson.
-By Michael Carolan, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-20-7842-9278;
michael.carolan@dowjones.com
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