Thomas Cook, The Co-operative Travel and Midlands Co-op Travel have announced the structure of the shareholder and operating Boards for their retail joint venture.
The merged retail group will be governed by a shareholder Board of seven from across the three businesses, with day-to-day operations overseen by an operating board of eight.
There is no place on either board for The Co-operative Travel’s managing director Mike Greenacre, who it is believed is soon to retire from the group, or for distribution director Alistair Rowland.
Thomas Cook UK chief executive Ian Ailles will chair a shareholder board consisting of Thomas Cook UK independent chief executive Phil Aird-Mash, Thomas Cook UK chief financial officer Michelle MacMahon and Thomas Cook human resources director Anne Billson Ross.
They will be joined by The Co-operative Group’s deputy chief executive Martyn Wates and marketing director Gill Barr, and from the Midlands Co-operative Society by chief executive Martyn Cheatle.
Thomas Cook UK head of retail Simon Robinson has already been confirmed as chief executive of the joint venture and will chair the operating board, which will oversee the financial and operational performance of the merged business.
The operating board will comprise:
- Paul Hemingway: Financial director who joins from The Co-operative Group
- Joanna Wild: Retail sales managing director, currently sales managing director for Thomas Cook
- Ken Smith: Commercial and marketing director, who joins from Midlands Co-op Travel where he was travel general manager
- Jacqui Holt: Foreign exchange director from Thomas Cook
- Trevor Davis: Specialist business director, who joins from The Co-operative Travel and will be responsible for non-retail sales including business travel, home workers and consortia
- Anna Heather: Integration director, who has held senior finance and strategy roles at Thomas Cook
- Rachael Prior: Human resources director, from Thomas Cook.
Robinson said: “It has always been our intention to appoint a leadership team that combines the collective knowledge, experience and skills of all three businesses. With the operating board members in place, the priority now is for each to develop the proposed organisational structure for their respective parts of the business.
“Details will be communicated and consulted on in the appropriate way in the weeks and months following completion.”
The joint venture is due to be completed on October 4.
Robinson and Hemingway will attend meetings of the new company’s shareholder board.
Following a period of transition the new venture will be supported by Thomas Cook’s corporate and central functions in Peterborough.