Mike Owen has been promoted to trading director at Costcutter following the retirement of Huw Edwards this month.
Owen is currently category director for fresh and frozen and has been with the symbol group for almost six years. Before joining the business, he spent the previous eight years on the buying team at Co-op and before that worked for Littlewoods for almost a decade.
Costcutter CEO Darcy Willson-Rymer told The Grocer that Edwards had been planning to step up for over a year and this had allowed Costcutter to ensure a smooth transition.
“We place on record our thanks to Huw, who has been instrumental to our business and having led and developed a strong team during his tenure,” he said. “I was delighted to appoint Mike to join my executive team.”
Edwards has worked in the grocery industry for more than 40 years. He initially began working with Costcutter in 2014 as part of the joint venture it set up with Palmer & Harvey, The BuyCo. His role was to shape engagement plans with suppliers ahead of Costcutter’s switch of supply from Nisa to P&H, which took place in July of that year.
He held that role for several months before replacing Vicky Reay as Costcutter trading director. He previously worked for Makro at the time of its acquisition by Booker and before that spent 15 years at Asda and eight years at M&S.
Last month The Grocer reported Costcutter’s parent company remains keen to sell the business, but plans could be on hold due to coronavirus.
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