Fortnum & Mason Taps Ex-Matchesfashion Executive as CEO
LONDON — British retailer Fortnum & Mason has tapped Tom Athron as its new chief executive officer.
Athron most recently served as chief operating officer at luxury retailer Matchesfashion, a position he resigned from last September. He also held positions at the British department store chain John Lewis and Partners and has a background in finance and consulting.
He will be joining the business — which is best known as the Queen’s grocer but also dabbles in the fragrance and jewelry categories — in December, allowing for a month’s handover from current ceo Ewan Venters. Venters, who has held the ceo position since 2012, is set to exit the business in January.
“A versatile and highly experienced business leader, Tom has extensive leadership experience in digital and physical retail across food, luxury and designer fashion: he is a great fit with the multichannel business that Fortnum’s has become,” said Kate Hobhouse, chair at Fortnum & Mason, which is owned by Wittington Investments Ltd. Wittington is majority-owned by the Garfield Weston Foundation, which also owns Selfridges and has a majority stake in Associated British Foods, parent of Primark.
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