Finance
UK's Pets at Home recruits former Waitrose executive as CEO to lead turnaround
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 23, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
Global Banking & Finance Review®
Company
Published by Global Banking & Finance Review®
Posted on December 23, 2025
2 min readLast updated: January 20, 2026
James Bailey, former Waitrose executive, is appointed CEO of Pets at Home to lead a retail turnaround following recent profit warnings.
Dec 23 (Reuters) - Pets at Home on Tuesday named former Sainsbury's and Waitrose executive James Bailey as its next CEO, to lead the turnaround of the pet-care provider's retail business.
Bailey was most recently managing director at Waitrose for more than five years, and helped re-launch Waitrose.com after the supermarket chain ended its online grocery partnership with Ocado.
Prior to that, he held senior roles at Sainsbury's for more than two decades.
Bailey's appointment to Pets at Home, effective March 30, 2026, comes after former CEO Lyssa McGowan abruptly left in September following two profit warnings in as many months.
In response, the company, which also offers grooming and veterinary services, last month presented a plan to address shortcomings in its pet food and accessories business by improving product ranges and cutting costs.
"The board believes James' experience aligns well with the group's ambitions for the coming years," Chair Ian Burke said in a statement.
"His strong retail leadership skills will support the ongoing focus on improving Pets at Home's retail business, with significant operational and commercial experience leading both stores and online operations."
(Reporting by Nithyashree R B in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich and Tomasz Janowski)
A profit warning is a statement issued by a company indicating that its earnings will be lower than expected. This can negatively impact the company's stock price and investor confidence.
Retail management involves overseeing the daily operations of a retail store, including sales, inventory management, customer service, and staff management, to ensure profitability and customer satisfaction.
Corporate governance refers to the systems, principles, and processes by which a company is directed and controlled. It encompasses the relationships among the company's management, board, shareholders, and other stakeholders.
A turnaround strategy is a plan implemented by a company to reverse a period of poor performance. It often involves restructuring, cost-cutting, and improving operational efficiencies to restore profitability.
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