Warburtons MD Neil Campbell will be leaving the business after nine years in charge, leaving chairman Jonathan Warburton to step into his place at Britain’s biggest bakery brand.
The bakery sector has been particularly hit hard by skyrocketing input costs and inflation as the price of gas, electricity, fuel, and labour packaging has started to soar.
Warburton will be taking the lead position at a time where industry insiders previously believed operational challenges were not being met.
Since moving to Warburtons Campbell has overseen strong growth and helped pioneer partnerships to secure exclusive contracts with the likes of Tesco, the Co-op and Iceland.
He also played a key role in the strong delivery Warburtons maintained in the pandemic, with Warburtons ranking second in the Advantage Survey last year.
Warburton told The Grocer: “We just felt we needed a change. We’re in new and very challenging times and felt as a board and as shareholders that we needed a fresh set of eyes.
“We would like to thank Neil for his commitment and leadership of our family business over the last nine years and wish him all the very best for the future.”
Warburton added: “From a personal perspective, our 150th anniversary is 2026, so I’ve committed to staying until then,” he said.
