TIDMABF
RNS Number : 2245T
Associated British Foods PLC
21 July 2022
Associated British Foods plc
Directorate Change and Creation of Strategic Advisory Board for
Primark
21 July 2022
Associated British Foods plc ("the Company") announces today
that Eoin Tonge has been appointed as the next Finance Director of
the Company. Eoin will succeed John Bason who will be retiring as
Finance Director and will be stepping down from the ABF Board.
Eoin will join the business with a start date to be agreed but
no later than February 2023. He is currently Chief Financial
Officer and Chief Strategy Officer at Marks and Spencer Group Plc,
a position he has held since May 2022, having joined as Chief
Financial Officer in June 2020. Prior to that, Eoin was Chief
Financial Officer of Greencore Group plc from 2016 to 2020 and,
before that, was Managing Director of Greencore's grocery division
and Chief Strategy Officer.
After stepping down from the ABF Board, John will subsequently
become Chairman of a newly constituted Strategic Advisory Board and
Senior Advisor at the Company's retail business, Primark. He has
agreed to stay on as Finance Director until the end of April 2023
to ensure a smooth transition.
The Primark Strategic Advisory Board will provide external
expertise to Paul Marchant, Primark Chief Executive, and to the
Primark Leadership Team as the business continues its expansion and
development. The Board will have members chosen for specific and
relevant areas of expertise. The Board will not have a governance
role and Primark's financial and operational reporting relationship
with ABF will remain unchanged.
Since our trading update of 20 June 2022, Group trading has been
in line with our expectations and our full year outlook remains
unchanged.
George Weston, Chief Executive of Associated British Foods,
said:
"I'm delighted to welcome Eoin to ABF. His extensive knowledge
and experience of both retail and food industries along with his
energy and broad understanding of business make him an ideal
successor to John as Finance Director. I am confident he will make
a strong contribution to the senior management team and to the
business.
John has been at ABF for more than 23 years. His contribution
has been wide-ranging and exceptional, and I'd like to thank him
for both his unbounded commitment to our company and for his
support to me personally. I am delighted therefore that he will be
making his wisdom and experience available both to Paul and to
Primark, a business that he admires and knows well. The environment
in which Primark operates is becoming increasingly complex,
presenting the business with substantial opportunities for growth.
The new Board will support Paul and his team as they examine these
opportunities to develop and grow the business."
Michael McLintock, Chairman of Associated British Foods,
said:
"On behalf of the ABF Board, I would like to record our deep
gratitude for the exceptional service that John has given the Group
during his 23 years as Finance Director. His contribution over this
period has been immense and, when he steps down from the Board at
the end of April, he will be hugely missed as both a friend and a
colleague. I am delighted that in due course we will continue to
benefit from John's expertise and advice in his new role at
Primark.
I join George in extending a very warm welcome to Eoin."
John Bason, Finance Director, said:
"It has been a privilege to be Finance Director of ABF in a
period that has seen considerable development of the Group. I have
enjoyed my time at ABF hugely and I'd like to thank my team for
their support and to recognise the many colleagues with whom I have
worked. I'm now looking forward to working closely with Paul and
his leadership team to deliver on Primark's full potential."
Paul Marchant, Primark Chief Executive, said:
"John has been a longstanding and trusted colleague and I am
excited by the opportunity to work with him in his new role. I know
he'll bring his wide-ranging experience to help shape the direction
of the Primark strategy."
Eoin Tonge said:
"ABF has a prestigious heritage, a strong sense of purpose and
an exciting portfolio of diverse businesses. I am looking forward
to working with the management teams to meet the challenges ahead
and drive growth."
The Company confirms that there are no further details to
disclose under 9.6.13R of the Listing Rules in respect of Eoin
Tonge.
For further information please contact:
Associated British Foods:
Tel: 020 7399 6545
George Weston, Chief Executive
John Bason, Finance Director
Chris Barrie, Corporate Affairs
Director
Citigate Dewe Rogerson:
Tel: 020 7638 9571
Jos Bieneman: 07834 336650
Holly Gillis: 07940 979560
Notes to Editors
1. Associated British Foods is a diversified international
food, ingredients and retail group with sales of GBP13.9bn
and 128,000 employees in 53 countries. It has significant
businesses in Europe, Africa, the Americas, Asia and Australia.
Our aim is to achieve strong, sustainable leadership positions
in markets that offer potential for long-term profitable
growth. We look to achieve this through a combination
of growth of existing businesses, acquisition of complementary
new businesses and achievement of high levels of operating
efficiency.
2. Eoin Tonge has been Chief Financial Officer and Chief
Strategy Officer at Marks and Spencer Group Plc since
May 2022. He joined the company as Chief Financial Officer
in June 2020 and led the business through the challenging
Covid period. From 2006 to 2020, he worked at Greencore
Group plc where he was Group CFO and before that Managing
Director of the Grocery Division which served all major
UK retailers. As Chief Strategy Officer, he led the delivery
of acquisition and disposal activities, and the reset
of the company's US and UK strategies. From 1994 to 2006
he worked at Goldman Sachs in London, Hong Kong and New
York.
3. John Bason was appointed as Finance Director of ABF in
May 1999. He was previously Finance Director of Bunzl
plc. John was a Non-Executive Director at Compass Group
PLC from 2011 to 2022, including roles as chair of the
Audit Committee and Senior Independent Director. He is
currently a Non-Executive Director at SSE plc and Bloomsbury
Publishing Plc and is also Chairman of the charity FareShare.
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END
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