Asda appoints former Morrisons boss David Potts as CEO

(Sharecast News) - Asda said on Tuesday that it has appointed former Morrisons boss David Potts as chief executive officer with immediate effect.

Allan Leighton - who has been executive chairman since November 2024 - will become non-executive chairman as planned.

Leighton said: "I am really excited to have appointed David/as group CEO. Over the last two years, we have stabilised the business and returned it to some growth and begun to establish Asda as 'more than a supermarket' through our Formula for Growth strategy. David has an outstanding record in our industry, his experience is exactly what we now require for the next stage of our transformation and beyond and it will be great to work with him."

David Potts said: "Asda has long been a great business, one I've admired and traded against over many years. The colleagues are remarkable, some of the most passionate I've met.

"The business has made good progress but significant opportunities remain and I'm delighted and very proud to have been asked by Allan to lead the team.

"Providing value to families across the UK has always been in Asda's DNA and by making improvements to the shopping trip every week, which customers can experience and feel in their pockets, we will revitalise the business and bring benefits for all our stakeholders, including our 116,296 very hard-working colleagues."

Clive Black, head of consumer research at Shore Capital, said: "We see this as a very strongly positive appointment for Asda, David Potts is one of the greatest grocers ever to walk the aisles of Britain, for a firm that has yielded considerable share in recent years albeit stabilising under Mr. Leighton.

"Hence, through time we can see this appointment as being a mechanism that should improve Asda but further tighten the competitive dynamics of one of the most effective industries of its type in Europe. Whether or not it influences any next steps around industry consolidation, remains to be seen."