The resignation of the chief executive of Primark, Paul Marchant, followed an investigation into his behavior with a woman “in a social environment”, said the UK owner Associated British Foods (ABF) on Monday.
He has just resigned immediately from Primark after 16 years as a CEO during which he took the company in expansion into US and Europe among other interests.
According to a statement released by the firm, Marchant cooperated with the investigation, admitted his mistake in judgment, and accepted that his acts were below the standards that ABF had expected.
That was when the latter apologized for their mistake.
The massive agri-food company ABF stated that it still provides assistance to the individual who alerted it to his actions.
When AFP contacted the group, they did not immediately provide more information.
According to ABF CEO George Weston , the statement read, I am extremely disappointed.
He went on to say that our culture must and does transcend any one person.
Primark, which has operations in 17 countries and employs over 80,000 people, is based in Ireland and contributes about half of ABF’s sales.
Changes in leadership
Marchant had the distinction of being the second CEO of the company after founder Arthur Ryan, who had run the organization since its foundation in 1969 in Ireland under the name of Penneys.
Marchant will be temporarily replaced by Eoin Tonge, the chief financial officer of ABF.
The change at the top is going to be unsettling, especially since Primark delivered a very mixed bag of results at the last count,’ said Susannah Streeter, head of money and markets at Hargreaves Lansdown.
“Weaker consumer sentiment coincides with this leadership upset,” she noted.
In addition to offering cafes, eyebrow bars, and hair salons, its 450 outlets mostly sell clothing and accessories.
In afternoon trading on London’s elite FTSE 100 index, ABF shares dropped 2%.
During the crucial holiday season in late 2024, Primark’s UK sales fell by about 6%.
Streeter indicated that he might see uncertainty about the speed of expansion due to the change in management, even though the better performance of Primark abroad was due most importantly to the strong focus of the group on store openings.
“Weaker consumer sentiment coincides with this leadership upset,” she noted.
In addition to offering cafes, eyebrow bars, and hair salons, its 450 outlets mostly sell clothing and accessories.
In afternoon trading on London’s elite FTSE 100 index, ABF shares dropped 2%.
During the crucial holiday season in late 2024, Primark’s UK sales fell by about 6%.
