Restructuring firm GA Europe promotes Milton Guffogg to chief executive

Guffogg replaces Gavin George who is “leaving to pursue other business interests”.

Guffogg, who takes the helm on March 31, has a background in retail. He was chief executive of now defunct card chain Celebrations Group and has held senior operational roles at retailers including K Shoes, Burton Group and Woolworths.

In his time at GA Europe he has worked on the debt purchase and restructuring of TJ Hughes, Ethel Austin, Suits You, British Bookshops, and Famous Footwear. He also worked on the management buyout of administration of footwear retailer Shoon, which was then sold to Ken Bartle and Peter Phillips, the former owners of Jones Bootmaker.

Guffogg was also involved in insolvent restructurings including Comet, Jessops, Blockbuster Italia, Game, Dreams, Jane Norman, and Bonmarché.

Andrew Gumaer, chief executive of GA Europe’s parent company Great American Group, said:  “We are excited to have Milton lead GA Europe into the next phase of our development. His extensive leadership experience will help GA Europe as it continues its expansion efforts. 

“Additionally, we greatly appreciate Gavin George’s contributions to GA Europe over the last four years and we wish him well in his future endeavors.”

Guffogg said: “I am personally very excited to be picking up the baton at this critical stage in GA Europe’s development and look forward to continuing to evolve our creative approach to solving distressed situations. We believe the opportunity exists across Europe for us to broaden our service offerings and I look forward to working more closely with our US affiliates to extend the growth of our business.”