Woollies’ soars as Ian Moir resigns while failure of David Jones haunts the company
JOHANNESBURG – Woolworths’ share price leapt nearly 10 percent on Tuesday as the market welcomed the resignation of chief executive Ian Moir, while the failure of the retailer’s David Jones acquisition continued to haunt the company.
Woolworths jumped 9.6 percent at 12.04pm to R52.83 a share, as the market celebrated “fresh blood” at the helm after Moir’s nearly decade-long tenure.
The share closed 8.3 percent higher at R52.20 on the JSE on Tuesday.
The group said Moir would be replaced by South Africa’s Roy Bagattini, 56, the president of global apparel brand Levi Strauss & Company Americas, who has a track record in mergers and acquisitions.
Woolies said Moir would be acting chief executive of David Jones, the Australian brand that the company acquired in 2014, intending to expand its footprint by creating a Southern Hemisphere retail giant but which had disappointed.
Source: iol.co.za
