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Next has revealed that its CFO, Amanda James, has decided to retire from full-time work after 28 years. The retailer also announced that the CFO of Reiss, Jonathan Blanchard will be her successor.
James will be stepping down from the board on 26 July 2024 and is planning to leave the group on 26 September that year, following the group’s interim results.
Blanchard will join Next in February 2024 and take over as CFO in the summer, as well as join the board of Next at that time.
The news comes as she has been planning this change “for some time” and has chosen to step down next year, because it coincides with her husband’s retirement.
According to Next, James has made a huge contribution to the group during her 28 years and has been an “exceptional” guardian of its finances, saying that the group’s financial position today is “a testament to her diligence and hard work.
Blanchard qualified as a certified chartered accountant in 1994 and has over 30 years of experience in finance. The last 25 years of his career have been at board level in private equity-backed businesses, all of which were in retail.
He played a critical role at Reiss, not least negotiating and implementing the transition to Total Platform.
A spokesperson for Next said: “We have worked closely with Jonathan for over three years and believe that his skills are well suited to Next’s financial disciplines and its culture.”
