Lidl UK has named three new directors following the appointment of its new chief executive Christian Hartnagel.
Tim Ulbrich, joining from Lidl Germany, and Robert Ryan, former regional director, have been named as new operations board directors, with Nan Gibson hired as HR board director, having left her role as vice president of people at Virgin Atlantic.
Ulbrich and Ryan will now share responsibility for store operations and logistics, along with Martin Bailie.
The new appointments were announced in a letter from Hartnagel sent to the business media, where he introduced himself and outlined his vision for the role.
Aged just 34, Hartnagel has worked for Lidl for 13 years and has worked his way up from customer assistant. He joins Lidl UK from the position of board director for Lidl Austria, where he was responsible for sales and operations.
“Under the strong leadership of Ronny Gottschlich, there has been an obvious turning point for the business, whereby shoppers have started to believe in the quality of the goods offered by Lidl - as well as the price,” he wrote.
“Brilliant marketing can, to some extent, be thanked for helping to convince many people to take their first steps through our doors. These disciplines will continue to be a key focus for our business as we continue to build on the progress that has been made.”
