Waitrose managing director Mark Price is stepping down after 33 years at the company to pursue new opportunities.
Due to leave on 3 April 2016, Price will be replaced by retail director Rob Collins. He is thought to be interested in the part-time role of chairman of television broadcaster Channel 4.
The timing of his departure has been agreed by chairman of the wider John Lewis Partnership Sir Charlie Mayfield, the company said.
Mayfield said: “Mark is pursuing new opportunities, but he will remain a passionate advocate of the partnership and its ownership model. He has had a long and distinguished career with the partnership and his leadership of Waitrose has seen outstanding success.
“As a member of the partnership board for 11 years and deputy chairman since 2013, Mark has played a key role in steering the partnership and has been a valued and trusted colleague.”
Collins has been with the company for 22 years, initially with John Lewis in a number of senior roles before moving to Waitrose in 2007 to establish its e-commerce business. He was appointed as personnel director in 2010, before being appointed as retail director in 2012.
“Rob Collins has been a central figure in Waitrose's management team for a number of years and his strong leadership skills and operational success have ensured that he has been a central part of the Board's thinking on succession planning for some time,” said Mayfield. “I'm confident that he will make the step-up to the managing director role quickly and effectively.”
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