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John Lewis has appointed the former boss of Tesco’s UK operations as 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 John Lewis department stores and Waitrose supermarket – as it looks to rebuild staff morale and win back disillusioned customers.
“You couldn’t ask for someone more qualified,” said one retail expert.
In a 33-year career at Tesco, having joined the supermarket as a graduate in 1990, Tarry worked in the food, general merchandise and clothing departments and oversaw the expansion of the F&F fashion range.
Retail experience: Jason Tarry will replace Sharon White at the helm of the employee-owned John Lewis partnership in September – months earlier than expected
Before stepping down in October, he spent his last six years as CEO of the UK and Ireland business, steering the country’s largest supermarket through the Covid-19 pandemic.
He will receive the same £990,000 salary as White, whose total pay package was £1.1 million last year, after pension payments and other benefits.
Tarry, 56, said: “The partnership is unique and I have 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 get back to retail basics, rather than getting into rental apartments and financial services.
Critics have been impressed by Tarry’s retail credentials after former Ofcom boss White’s civil service background became a sore spot.
It is hoped the supermarket expertise will help revive Waitrose, which has lost market share to Tesco and Marks & Spencer.
“It really addresses the issue of a lack of retail experience at the top of JLP. You couldn’t ask for someone more qualified to understand UK retail,” said Neil Saunders, managing director of GlobalData’s retail division.
‘It will give confidence to partners, who are increasingly nervous and frustrated because the company is not focusing on the right things. With a retail champion at the top, they get a boost.’
After a torrid three years in the red, it returned to profit last year after posting a £234 million 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 nearly century-long history.
Yesterday she said: ‘It has been a huge privilege to serve as chair and I am proud of what everyone has achieved. We have laid the foundation for a stronger partnership.”
Last year there were rumors that 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 company had become a “laughing stock”.
Despite an unexpected turnaround in the financial situation in 2023, the 70,000-strong workforce was denied an annual bonus for the third time since 1953.
White said in March that a payout ‘wouldn’t be right’ after the company pressed ahead with an aggressive £88m cost-cutting plan and cut hundreds of jobs.