Former Morrisons CEO takes up help of Asda

British supermarket giant Asda has appointed David Potts as group chief executive officer, with Allan Leighton to take up the role of non-executive group chairman in his stead.

Potts has been in the supermarket industry for 39 years, largely at Tesco, where he moved through operational and leadership roles both in the UK and internationally. Among his positions, he served as CEO of Tesco Ireland, Asia and the chain’s retail store business, before taking up the helm of Morrisons in 2015.

With Asda, Potts said he had identified significant opportunities to continue ongoing progress in revitalising the business. “Christmas is upon us and the business has a clear focus on keeping Asda prices locked low at this important time for our customers,” he added.

Leighton underlined that the business had stabilised over the last two years, returning to growth and establishing the “more than a supermarket” Growth Strategy. “ He continued: “David has an outstanding record in our industry, his experience is exactly what we now require for the next stage of our transformation and beyond and it will be great to work with him.”