British clothing and homeware retailer Matalan has announced Jason Hargreaves, son of the company’s founder, will take over as managing director.
The appointment comes off the back of poor first quarter sales, which dropped 7% from the previous year to £258.6 million (€298.7 million).
Jason has more than 20 years experience working within the family business, but does not serve on the board.
Matalan was founded by John Hargreaves, and was based on the edge-of-town retail concept he saw in the US. Beginning with one store in the northern English city of Preston in 1985 the retail chain now operates from more than 200 locations, and has made Hargreaves one of Britain’s richest men, with an estimated net worth of £1 billion.
Listed publicly in 1998, Hargreaves bought out minority shareholders in 2006 after several years of poor performance.
Jason takes over from Darren Blackhurst and his new role will take effect immediately.