Coop Denmark has announced the appointment of executive vice president Kræn Østergård Nielsen as its new CEO.
Nielsen joined Coop Denmark in 2014 and has held several positions in the company including that of property director, technology director and member of the executive board as CFO.
He will succeed Peter Høgsted, who is to retire by the end of this year.
Chairman of the Board of Coop Denmark, Lasse Bolander, said, “With Kræn [Østergård Nielsen], we get a CEO who is respected by all parts of the Coop family.
"A leader who over the past almost seven years has documented extremely strong results, and who has the fundamental understanding of Coop's uniqueness as a member-owned company.”
An Experienced Professional
In 1995, Nielsen started his career as a sales assistant at SuperBrugsen Hørning in East Jutland.
He then served as a buyer for Dansk Supermarked, followed by the position of marketing manager in 3-Stjernet.
Between 2004-2012 he served in several roles including divisional director at ISS, before joining McKinsey & Company in 2012 as a management consultant.
Commenting on his new role, Nielsen, said, “My most important tasks are that customers get even better experiences when they visit our stores. The first priority will be that we have Denmark's most satisfied customers.”
© 2020 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Dayeeta Das. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.