Kitwave CFO David Brind is to retire from his executive role and will leave the group at the end of the 2025 trading year.
Brind joined Kitwave in 2011, and during his tenure has overseen 15 acquisitions and the wholesaler’s IPO in 2021.
Group financial controller Mark Earl, who has worked within the business for 10 years, will take over as CFO, formally joining the board on 30 April 2026.
Earl joined as finance director of Kitwave’s frozen and chilled division in 2015, before assuming the position of group finance controller in 2019.
“On behalf of everyone at Kitwave, I would like to thank David Brind for his unwavering commitment over the past 14 years,” said Kitwave CEO Ben Maxted. “David has played an instrumental role in the group’s growth and transformation into a UK-wide wholesale delivery business.
“We are also delighted that Mark Earl is set to become our new CFO after the release of our 2025 annual accounts. With Mark’s deep knowledge of the business and our market, he is the ideal successor to David.”
The board changes come as the wholesale business has reported that trading during the six months to 31 October 2025 has been “as anticipated”, as the board expects profit to be in line with market expectations for the full year.
In May, Kitwave announced that it had taken the decision to incur some additional operational investment at the new South West depot to maintain service levels, as the business transitioned from three separate locations to one.
According to the group, the new depot is operating at an improved level and is on track to meet expected performance levels by early 2026.
In September 2024, Kitwave acquired Creed Foodservice and the integration of the business into wider operations has “moved ahead of schedule”, which has resulted in the closure of two depots in Hull and Huddersfield that previously traded under the Total Foodservice business.
Maxted added: “In the context of a difficult consumer spending environment, the group has delivered a good performance and we expect to report profit growth in line with market forecasts for the period.
“The board believes that the macroeconomic outlook is set to remain difficult for the foreseeable future. The board remains vigilant as to the potential impact on the business of the forthcoming budget.”
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