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David was previously CFO of Casual Dining Group, the parent company of restaurant brands such as Café Rouge

McColl’s has moved swiftly to replace CFO Robbie Bell who announced he was leaving to take up the equivalent role at Holland & Barrett earlier this month.

The convenience store chain has appointed Giles David after what it said was a “thorough search process”.

David, who will officially start on 1 June, was previously CFO of Casual Dining Group, the parent company of restaurant brands Bella Italia, Café Rouge and Las Iguanas. He left the business in December - it has subsequently been hit hard by the current hospitality shutdown and fell into administration last week.

He has over two decades of experience in senior finance roles across retail, hospitality, property and telecoms, and is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants.

“I am excited to be joining McColl’s and look forward to working with Jonathan [Miller, CEO], the Board and all my new colleagues,” said David.

“As a leading neighbourhood retailer, McColl’s is playing an invaluable role in serving local communities at this time. It will be a privilege to be part of that work, and as we look to the future, I believe we have a real opportunity to deliver on the Group’s strategy to drive growth in the years ahead.”

McColl’s CEO Jonathan Miller added: “Giles is a highly experienced CFO with a real understanding of customer-facing businesses, and I’m delighted he’s joining McColl’s. This is a very busy time for our business with increased customer demand, as we work hard to serve customers across the UK, and we’re really looking forward to having Giles on board and benefiting from his expertise.”

McColl’s has also promoted chief commercial officer Richard Crampton to its board and appointed Benedict Smith as a non-executive director.