Tesco hires former Amazon and Apple executive Allan Lyall as customer fulfilment director

Lyall starts on Monday and bolsters Tesco’s multichannel team. He will report into group multichannel director Robin Terrell. The two have worked alongside each other previously, spending four years together at Amazon.

Tesco called Lyall “one of the leading figures in the world of online retailing”. He spent 12 years as Amazon’s vice president of European operations, a role which encompassed customer experience, infrastructure development and supply chain logistics.

Lyall had direct responsibility for 21 Amazon fulfilment centres – over 13 million sq ft – across five countries.

Prior to Amazon, Lyall spent six years as director of fulfilment for Apple, based in Paris.

At Tesco, Lyall will oversee delivery to customers, click and collect, dotcom centres and its general merchandise distribution centre. He is also charged with “developing and implementing our future Customer Fulfilment proposition”, Tesco said.

Terrell said: “For Tesco, multichannel retailing means enabling customers to engage with us however, whenever and wherever they want. Offering genuinely convenient delivery and collection options is a fundamental part of achieving this goal. We have exciting, industry-leading plans in this area and there is no one better qualified than Allan to execute them. We worked together for over four years at Amazon and he has an outstanding track record. I’m delighted he’s joining us.”

Lyall said: “Offering the broadest range of convenient fulfilment options which suit customers’ busy lifestyles is key to success in today’s fast-changing retail world, and I’m excited by the opportunity to help Tesco lead the way in offering the next generation of delivery and collection choices to its customers.”