Morrisons has decided to part company with chief executive Dalton Philips on the back of disappointing Christmas sales.
Morrisons has also revealed that it will close ten loss-making stores this year.
The UK's fourth-largest supermarket chain has confirmed that Philips, who has led Morrisons since 2010, will stand down at the time of the supermarket's financial results in March.
The supermarket revealed that like-for-like sales excluding fuel had dropped by 3.1 per cent in the six weeks to 4 January.
Philips said that he would be leaving "a great company", adding that during his five-year tenure, many improvements have been made to the business and given Morrisons strong foundations for the future.
Morrisons confirmed that Andrew Higginson, a former Tesco executive, would take over as its chairman from Sir Ian Gibson this month.
"In the next chapter of Morrisons' development, we need to return the business to growth. The board believes this is best done under new leadership," commented Higginson, adding that Philips had brought great personal qualities and values to the business in the face of considerable industry turmoil and change.
Commenting on the news, Neil Saunders, managing director of Conlumino, said, "While all of the big supermarkets have been starved of sales by a decidedly ungenerous grocery growth rate, Morrisons is the one that looks most undernourished. Recent years have seen it slim down considerably, and with a significant loss of market share, it has emerged as the main loser in the grocery wars.
"Indeed, that it is now looking to close ten stores is testament to the fall of the business. Despite a raft of recent initiatives and changes – including moving online, launching a price-match scheme and pressing ahead with its convenience stores – nothing seems to have stemmed the tide. Given the long run of decline and the lack of an effective recovery plan, it is inevitable that Dalton Philips had to go."
@ 2015 ESM - European Supermarket Magazine To receive this ESM news directly in your inbox, email peter@esmmagazine.com.
To subscribe to ESM magazine, email colette@esmmagazine.com.
