New-Zealand based discount clothing retailer The Warehouse Group will experience a raft of management changes next month with both a new chairman and chief executive poised to take office on May 2.
As reported on Ragtrader.com.au, The Warehouse Group chief executive and managing director Ian Morrice recently announced he would step down from the role with Mark Powell to take his place, but the final handover date of May 2 was not revealed until today.
Morrice has been working with chief executive designate Powell to ensure a smooth transition in the interim and will remain a senior executive of the company after the shift, supporting Powell and the board and carrying out specific projects. However, it is expected that Morrice will conclude his employment once these projects are completed in November this year.
The company will also welcome a new chairman next month, with current chairman Keith Smith announcing his resignation today. Graham Evans, a director at The Warehouse Group will move into the role on May 2.
Smith, who has worked with The Warehouse Group since the first store was opened in 1982, will remain a director at the company and assume the role of deputy chairman. He will also retain his position as chairman of the Disclosure Committee and a member of the Audit Committee and the Remuneration, Talent and Nomination Committee.
Evans has been a director at The Warehouse Group since1998 and is also currently chairman of the group's Remuneration, Talent and Nomination Committee and a member of the Audit and Corporate Governance Committees. His previous experience also includes a 14-year stint as managing director of Woolworths New Zealand.
Founder and non-executive director of The Warehouse Group, Stephen Tindall, has also hinted at further management changes ahead in a statement released today.
“The Warehouse Group has been assiduous in developing a deep pool of talent over the years, and this is reflected in the changes announced today. Further appointment swill be made to the board in due course.