Tesco veteran to steer John Lewis turnaround
Tarry succeeds chairman White with back to basics message
JOHN Lewis has named the former boss of Tesco’s UK business as its chairman.
Jason Tarry will replace Sharon White at the employee-owned John Lewis Partnership (JLP) in September – months earlier than expected.
The appointment was seen as a triumph for the group – which owns the John Lewis department stores and supermarket Waitrose – as it strives to rebuild staff morale and win back disillusioned shoppers.
‘You couldn’t ask for someone who is better qualified,’ one retail expert said.
In a 33-year career at Tesco, having joined the supermarket as a graduate in 1990, Tarry worked on its food, general merchandise and clothing arms and oversaw the expansion of its F&F fashion range.
Before stepping down in October, he spent his final six years as chief executive of the UK and Irish arm, steering the country’s largest supermarket through the Covid-19 pandemic.
He will be paid the same £990,000 salary as White, whose total pay packet last year topped £1.1m after pension payments and other benefits.
Tarry, 56, said: ‘The partnership is unique and I’ve long been an admirer of the employee-ownership model, its values and partner- led customer service. This starts with a sharp focus on being brilliant retailers for customers and investing in growth.’
This was welcome news for those who urged the partnership to go back to its retail basics rather than dabbling with rental flats and finance services.
Critics are impressed by Tarry’s retail credentials after former Ofcom boss White’s civil service background became a sore spot. It is hoped the grocery expertise will help revive Waitrose which has lost market share to Tesco and Marks & Spencer.
‘It really does address the issue of a lack of retail experience at the top of JLP – you couldn’t ask for someone who is better qualified to understand UK retail,’ said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData’s retail division. ‘It will give confidence to partners, who have been increasingly nervous and frustrated that the business isn’t focusing on the right things. Having a retail champion at the top will give them a bit of a boost.’
After a torrid three years in the red, it returned to profit last year after a £234m loss in 2022.
White was expected to step down at the end of her five-year term in February 2025.
She will be the shortest serving chairman in the group’s near-century long history.
Speaking yesterday, she said: ‘It’s been a huge privilege to be chairman and I’m proud of what everyone has achieved. We’ve built the foundations for a stronger partnership.’
Last year there were rumours she might join Facebook parent Meta. Although she steered the partnership through Covid, retail analyst Jonathan De Mello said he thought her legacy would be ‘terrible’ as the firm had become a ‘laughing stock’.
Despite an unexpected swing in financial fortunes in 2023, its 70,000- strong workforce were denied an annual bonus for the third time since 1953. White said a payout ‘would not be right’ in March after the company ploughed ahead with an aggressive £88m cost savings scheme and axed hundreds of jobs.