Rob Hattrell

Rob Hattrell

Tesco’s general merchandise boss Rob Hattrell has left the business after eight years to join online giant eBay as UK vice president.

Hattrell, who ran the supermarket’s GM business across the UK and Central Europe for the past three years, joined Tesco as IT director in 2009. Before that, he was a partner in the global retail practice at Accenture.

The Oxford graduate will join eBay on 27 February and will be responsible for leading the UK business - one of eBay’s strongest markets worldwide, attracting more than 20 million active buyers a month. He takes over from Tanya Lawler, eBay’s outgoing UK vice president.

Tesco announced former health and beauty boss Ashwin Prasad would fill his former role as GM boss.

Prasad joined Tesco from Mars in 2010 and has held several category director positions, most recently leading the health, beauty and wellness team.

EBay’s European vice president Paul Todd said: “I’m delighted to welcome Rob Hattrell to eBay. He brings vast experience in both online and physical retail, and I am truly excited about the ways in which these experiences can help to drive the eBay UK business forward in 2017.”

Hattrell said he looked forward to “helping build the next chapter” of eBay in the UK. “EBay is the place the world comes to shop, sell and give,” he added. “Customers, empowered by technology, are driving the continuous growth of internet retailing, and eBay is very much part of that seismic shift in the market.”