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The John Lewis Partnership has announced that James Bailey will step down as managing director of Waitrose at the end of September after more than five years in the role.
Bailey joined in 2020 and led the supermarket through the pandemic and the cost of living crisis.
Under his leadership, Waitrose was recently named best supermarket for customer service and product availability at The Grocer awards.
Tina Mitchell, currently retail director for Waitrose, will become interim managing director while the Partnership searches for Bailey’s successor.
Jason Tarry, chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, said: “James has done an outstanding job, overseeing significant transformation and growth during a period of change. He will leave Waitrose in a much stronger position and will be missed by everyone.”
Bailey added: “It’s been a great privilege to lead this unique and special business. Waitrose is back on a very strong footing with record customer numbers, strong sales growth and a turnaround in profitability, so this feels like the right time to hand over the reins.”
