Asda makes new senior appointments to ‘help drive 2025 growth ambitions’

The supermarket today announced that former Morrisons exec Lauren Lepley will join as its new vice president of central operations in December, while former M&S man Mark Henry will join in the new year as the new vice president of retail south, responsible for Asda’s southern store operations.

Both Lepley and Henry will report directly to chief operations officer Matt Heslop, who is set to join the business in January.

Asda chair Lord Stuart Rose said of the new appointments: “We are very pleased to welcome Lauren and Mark to Asda. They both bring a wealth of retail experience and proven track records in delivering operational excellence. This will be invaluable as we strengthen our business and deliver our long-term growth ambitions.”

Lepley joins from Morrisons where she was formerly group supply chain director, and has more than 14 years’ experience in the grocery sector, having started her career with Tesco. 

Henry was most recently group asset protection lead for Marks & Spencer, and has over 25 years’ experience, having also been chief operating officer for discounter Lidl’s Finnish business.

In recent months, Asda has also appointed former Iceland executives Andrew Staniland and David Devaney in new roles. 

The supermarket also said that VP retail south east Chris McKellar will leave the business in the new year to take up a “career opportunity overseas”, and Simon Jury, VP data and analytics will also leave the business at the end of the year.