M&S reopens search for stores director as Lepley quits before starting

By

Barbara Santamaria

Published
Oct 24, 2019

Marks & Spencer’s management team has been dealt another blow with the news that its incoming stores director David Lepley will not move forward with plans to join the department store chain.

His appointment was announced last month following months of turmoil at the British company, underpinned by its relegation from the FTSE 100 and a third consecutive year of decline in full year profits.

Several senior executives have left the group in the past few months, including clothing and home boss Jill McDonald, chief financial officer Humphrey Singer and Gordon Mowat, head of supply chain and logistics.

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Lepley was expected to play a crucial role in the implementation of a turnaround plan for the retailer’s store operations, but he has now decided to stay at Morrisons, where he has been working since 2016.

According to Retail Week, Lepley has been offered a bigger role than his current post as operations director.

Last week, Marks & Spencer announced plans for a new 60,000 sq ft store at Giltbrook retail park in the Midlands, which is scheduled to open in the summer of 2020. It will follow the opening of a new store in Cornwall – the first M&S clothing store opening in the South West for ten years.