Kingfisher names Bhavesh Mistry as new CFO

B&Q owner Kingfisher has announced the appointment of Bhavesh Mistry to the role of chief financial officer, with his exact start date to be announced in due course. The news comes as current CFO Bernard Bot will be retiring to “further pursue his non-executive career”. While Bot’s leaving date is to be confirmed, it will be no earlier than January 2025 and he will support the transition before his retirement. As the current CFO of British Land since 2021, Mistry will bring extensive finance and retail experience. He was also previously deputy CFO of Tesco from 2018 to 2021, and before that, he held senior finance positions over more than two decades at Whitbread, Virgin Media and Anheuser-Busch InBev. Thierry Garnier, CEO of Kingfisher, said: “I am very pleased to welcome Bhavesh to Kingfisher as our new chief financial officer. Bhavesh has a wealth of finance and retail experience, combined with a strategic mindset and an excellent track record of delivery. “I would also like to personally thank Bernard for his huge contribution to Kingfisher. Bernard has been integral to the transformation of our business under the Powered by Kingfisher strategy and played a key role in leading us through the challenges of the pandemic. He will leave a very strong legacy to build on.” Mistry added: “I am very pleased to be joining a dynamic international retailer with a clear strategy and compelling growth opportunities. The pace of change at Kingfisher in recent years has been impressive and I am looking forward to working with its talented teams to build on this momentum and make the most of the many opportunities ahead.” Bot concluded: “I am proud of the progress we have made with Thierry, the group executive and all the teams over the past five years in building a stronger Kingfisher. It has been a privilege to serve as CFO and I would like to thank Thierry and the board for their confidence and support. “I am hugely grateful to my team and all the fantastic people I have had the opportunity to work with across the business. There is still a lot to do in the coming months and I look forward to my remaining time at Kingfisher and supporting a smooth transition to Bhavesh in due course.”