The East of England Co-op has appointed Andy Rigby as acting CEO for a minimum of 12 months.

Rigby, who joined the convenience retailer in early 2022 as chief operations officer, has more than 40 years’ leadership experience in senior executive roles in the UK, EU and international markets.

East of England Co-op president Joy Burnford said: “Andy has proven himself to be a force for good in many ways for our Society in the time he has been with us.

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“We welcome his appointment as we continue on our journey together to make a bigger difference in our communities and return to sustainable profit.”

Rigby added: ”Our focus remains on our customers, our colleagues, our members and our communities who we take great pride in supporting and serving, now and in the future.

“I’d like to thank our 3,000 incredible colleagues who continue to work so hard for our co-op and our board too for their continued support. I’m excited and proud to continue to work closely with them to deliver our strategy. We’ve come a long way in a short-time and we have lots to be excited about.”