Bensons for Beds has appointed Costcutter director Francesca Haynes to helm its retail division.

Haynes, who was previously central operations director at Bestway Retail, will begin her role as retail director on May 9.

Prior to Costcutter, where she worked for over two years, Haynes held director positions at retailers including Aldi, Asda and B&Q.

Haynes, who has “significant experience of retail, customer services, human resources and engagement and culture”, will report into Bensons chief commercial and digital office Nick Collard.

Collard’s existing remit will be expanded to include retail as current retail managing director Alan Williams prepares to step down.

Williams, who has worked at Bensons for 23 years, will step down in September to ensure a smooth transition of his remit to Collard.

Bensons chief executive Mark Jackson said: “But as much as I’ll miss Alan’s wise counsel and wish him all the best for the future, I’m looking forward to our next chapter as we continue our transformation.” 

Collard added: “I feel very privileged to be taking over responsibility for retail from Alan as we start accelerating our omnichannel thinking and bringing it to life in the stores and online. Frankie’s extensive retail experience is going to be a tremendous asset to Bensons.”

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