Matalan appoints Ruth Golightly as head of buying for childrenswear

Matalan has appointed the former George at Asda buying and design head Ruth Golightly as head of buying for childrenswear.

Golightly joins from Manchester-based Blues Group, where she spent three years as senior director for design, sales and licensing. 

Before that, she held a series of senior buying roles at George at Asda over a 16-year period, including head of womenswear and head of baby and maternity. Earlier in her career, she was a fashion buyer at Next.

Her appointment follows Matalan’s recent announcement that Henrik Nordvall will join as chief executive in February 2026. 

Nordvall has spent the past 17 years with clothing retailer H&M, most recently in senior leadership roles across its international business.

His appointment follows a strong first-half performance from Matalan, with pre-IFRS16 EBITDA up 69% to £34m in the six months to 30 August 2025.

Sarah Welsh, Chief Product, Brand and Commercial Officer at Matalan said: “Following the appointment of Shelley Whalley to Head of Womenswear (from childrenswear) earlier in the year after delivering significant growth in this area , we are delighted to be able to welcome Ruth to Matalan.

“Ruth has expansive and deep-rooted expertise in childrenswear and will support our continued market share growth in an area where we are already winning customers share of wallet. Ruth joins at a hugely exciting time for the business and will complement our existing internal talent as we strive to deliver the combination of Everyday Style, Quality & Value across all of our ranges.”