Kingfisher appoints new non-executive director

Kingfisher plc today announces the appointment of Rakhi Parekh as a non-executive director of the Company with effect from 1 February 2016 and as a member of both the Audit and Nomination Committees.

Ms Parekh is a highly experienced director in digital retailing having spent 11 years at Amazon.com in various roles from 2002-14. Most recently she was Director, UK Media at Amazon, responsible for ranges such as books, music and DVDs. She was previously Director, UK Hardlines where she was responsible for home, garden and DIY product ranges. Prior to joining Amazon Ms Parekh held roles at TomTom (wireless products) and in management consultancy in the United States.

Ms Parekh is also a non-executive director of Rightmove plc, Intu Properties plc and Be Heard Group plc (a digital marketing company).

Janis Kong will step down from the Kingfisher board on 1 February 2016 after nine years as a non-executive director.

Commenting on the changes, Daniel Bernard, Chairman of Kingfisher, said:

“I am delighted to welcome Rakhi to Kingfisher. Her range of digital skills and experience, as well as her other non-executive roles, will be of great benefit to Kingfisher and I look forward to working with her. She will further enhance our board, which already includes directors with experience gained at Apple and IKEA, among others.”

“I would also like to thank Janis for her nine years of distinguished service on the Kingfisher board. Her wise counsel has been greatly appreciated and I wish her well.”

Véronique Laury, Chief Executive Officer of Kingfisher said:

“Driving our digital capability is one of the three key pillars of Kingfisher’s transformation announced today. Rakhi’s extensive experience in digital and multichannel retailing will therefore be vital as we work to transform Kingfisher into a single, unified company where customer needs always come first.”

Source : Kingfisher Press Release
www.kingfisher.com