Dunnhumby has appointed a new CEO, Jamie Samaha.
Samaha succeeds Josh Bottomley, who decided to step down after three years.
Samaha joins from customer engagement and retail media platform company Reward, which was acquired by Nasdaq-listed Rezolve AI in February for $230m.
The Reward platform is behind many bank loyalty programmes including Visa, NatWest Group, Barclays and First Abu Dhabi Bank, as well as retailers such as McDonald’s, eBay, Deliveroo and Amazon.
Prior to Reward, Samaha led Australian fintech business Prezzee, and served at Mastercard as executive VP of consumer engagement services, leading loyalty, media and data-driven consumer propositions across more than 60 markets globally.
“His strong track record of commercial execution combined with his experience at the intersection of data, loyalty, media and customer engagement makes him ideally placed to build on the progress of recent years and scale Dunnhumby’s impact for retailers and brands globally,” said Ken Murphy, Tesco Group CEO.
Samaha said he was “excited to join the team and build on the strong momentum as we shape the next chapter of Dunnhumby’s growth together”.
“Dunnhumby has an exceptional heritage, outstanding talent and deep partnerships with many of the world’s leading retailers and brands. Retail and consumer markets are evolving rapidly, and few companies are better placed than Dunnhumby to help clients navigate that change and unlock growth,” he added.
Samaha will work with Bottomley until mid‑July to support a handover and transition period.
“I’ve hugely valued my time at Dunnhumby and am immensely proud of what the team has achieved over the past three years in creating value for leading retail and brand partners globally,” Bottomley said.
“We’ve built strong foundations for the future, and as the business enters its next phase of growth, I look forward to seeing Dunnhumby go from strength to strength,” he added.
Dunnhumby was co-founded by Edwina Dunn and Clive Humby in 1989, and the pair masterminded the launch of Tesco Clubcard in 1995.
Tesco purchased a 53% stake in 2001 and increased it to 84% in 2006 before acquiring the remaining shares and acquiring it outright in 2010. Five years later the supermarket sought a buyer for the company, but it officially scrapped the sale plans after it emerged bidders were not prepared to go close to Tesco’s original circa-£2bn asking price.
In 2021, Tesco launched its retail media arm ‘Tesco Media and Insight, powered by Dunnhumby’ – now known as Tesco Media – which it claims to be the UK’s largest closed-loop grocery media and insight platform.
Bottomley was appointed CEO of Dunnhumby in 2023, taking over from Dan Olley who had lasted little over a year in the role.
“Josh has played a pivotal role in growing Dunnhumby during a period of rapid technological change, as the intelligence layer connecting retailers, brands and consumers,” Murphy said.
“He has strengthened partnerships and expanded our impact worldwide, grown Tesco Media into an award-winning media business and laid the foundations for long-term, scalable technology innovation. Josh leaves the business well-positioned for the future and I’d like to thank him for his significant contribution.”
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