Travis Perkins CEO to retire

Geoff Cooper, the chief executive officer of Wickes' parent company Travis Perkins Plc, will retire as a director and full time employee on his 60th birthday next March, and step down as ceo in January, after nine years at the helm of the business.

From January 1, 2014 the new ceo of Travis Perkins will be the current deputy chief executive John Carter. Mr Cooper will remain as a part time senior management advisor, with a particular brief to assist with the further development of Toolstation for a period of 12 months from his retirement.

During his time with the group, Mr Cooper oversaw the company grow from £1.83bn in turnover to £4.85bn for the year ending December 2012, with market capitalisation from £2bn to £4.1bn and profit before tax from £190m to £300m.

Mr Carter's promotion came about following a thorough review by the nominations committee and a unanimous board vote. Having started with Sandell Perkins as a management trainee back in 1978, Mr Carter's time with the company spans a wide range of operational and commercial functions.

Commenting on the succession, Travis Perkins non-executive chairman Robert Walker said: "Geoff has made an outstanding contribution to the success of Travis Perkins. He has managed the company through a number of important landmarks and has created and led a management team that is widely regarded as the best in the sector; the culmination of a very successful executive career. He will of course be missed and we wholeheartedly wish him well as he develops his plural career.

"John will be an excellent successor to Geoff. His entire career has been spent with Travis Perkins and he too has made a huge contribution to our success over a long period of time. He is one of the most experienced and highly regarded senior managers in the industry and the board has every confidence that, working with our CFO, Tony Buffin, he will lead our executive team with distinction, and continue to drive the company forward."

Source: DIY Week