M&S appoints Venu Nair head of India operations

Apparel and home products retailer Marks & Spencer’s has

appointed Venu Nair as Head of its India operations, replacing CEO Martin Jones who is moving back to the parent company. Nair takes charge as MD of the London-headquartered company.

Sources said Jones was moving back for personal reasons. Nair was head of sourcing for the £9.7 billion British retailer in South Asia and Director of buying operations for India. M&S operates in India through Marks & Spencer Reliance India, a joint venture with Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries, selling clothes and home deor. It has 24 outlets across the country.

Marks & Spencer opened its first store in India in 2001 and in April 2008 signed a joint venture with Reliance Retail to form Marks & Spencer Reliance India. The company recently launched its first high street sustainable learning store in India at South Extension, Delhi – as part of M&S' drive to become the world's most sustainable major retailer by 2015.Trading over three floors, the new 20,000 sq. ft. store hosts a range of sustainable construction and design features to reduce energy usage and waste. The store will provide M&S with valuable insight into sustainable building practices in India, which it will use to support future projects in the country.