Kingfisher PLC changes board

Kingfisher plc has announced the following changes to its main Board:

Andrew Bonfield, Non-Executive Director, has notified the Board of his intention to step down from the Board at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting on 12 June 2018.

Jeff Carr has been appointed as a Non-Executive Director and will join the Board with effect from 1 June 2018.

Jeff is an experienced CFO, bringing over 30 years of relevant experience to the Board. He was instrumental in the merger to create Ahold Delhaize in 2016, and has overseen the successful integration of the businesses. Jeff will add valuable finance, retail, and digital expertise to the Board. He will also replace Andrew Bonfield as Chair of the Audit Committee following Andrew’s retirement from the Board at the conclusion of the 2018 AGM.  Upon appointment, Jeff will join the Audit Committee and the Nomination Committee.

The Board has also appointed Claudia Arney as a Non-Executive Director. Claudia is an experienced Non-Executive Director, and brings a wealth of experience of business transformation and building digital capabilities.

Claudia will join the Board with effect from 1 November 2018, and upon appointment, will become a member of the Remuneration Committee and the Nomination Committee.

Commenting on these changes, Andy Cosslett, Chairman of Kingfisher, said: "I am delighted to welcome Jeff and Claudia to the Kingfisher Board. Their skills and experience will provide valuable insight to the Board’s deliberations, and we look forward to working with them both.

"I would also like to thank Andrew Bonfield for his outstanding contribution to the Company over the past 8 years, and his excellent chairmanship of the Audit Committee. The Board and I wish him well for the future.”

There are no other details that are required to be disclosed in respect of the above changes under paragraph 9.6.13 of the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority save as disclosed in this announcement.

Jeffrey Carr

Jeff is currently CFO of Koninklijke Ahold Delhaize N.V. (“Ahold Delhaize”), one of the world’s largest retail groups. Ahold Delhaize is headquartered in the Netherlands, operates across Europe and the US, and has a strong physical and e-commerce offering.

Jeff was previously Group Finance Director at both FirstGroup plc and easyJet plc, and held senior finance roles at Associated British Foods plc and Reckitt Benckiser Group plc.  He was also previously a Non-Executive Director at McBride PLC.

Jeff is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, UK.

Claudia Arney

Claudia is currently Non-Executive Director and chair of the remuneration committee at both Halfords Group plc and Derwent London PLC. She also serves as a Non-Executive Director and Chair of the Governance Committee at Aviva plc, and as a Non-Executive Director of the Premier League.  

Claudia’s previous Non-Executive roles include; Senior Independent Director of Telecity Group plc, Board Member of Transport for London, The Shareholder Executive, Which?, Huawei Technologies, and Chair of the Public Data Group.

Claudia began her career at McKinsey & Co, before holding roles at Pearson, the Financial Times, Goldman Sachs, and HM Treasury. She was Group Managing Director, Digital at EMAP from 2008 to 2010.

Source: Insight DIY Team & Kingfisher Press Release

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