Asda, which has been struggling with falling sales amid the intense supermarket price war, has hired Roger Burnley, the man in charge of Sainsbury’s shop estate, online operations and logistics, as its new chief operating officer.
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Mr Clarke was appointed chief operating officer at Asda in 2007, three years before he took on the chief executive’s role.
Sainsbury’s said Burnley had left with immediate effect and commenced 12-months “gardening leave” as per the terms of his contract, given that Asda is a direct competitor.
The second quarter outcome, Asda’s worst performance in the 16 years it’s been owned by Wal-Mart, was described by Clarke as the firm’s “nadir”.
Asda’s boss said: ‘Adding Roger to Asda’s Executive team further strengthens the board which, I believe, is now one of the most experienced and capable in the industry.
Mr Clarke admitted that Mr Burnley is joining the company at a time of “unprecedented turbulence” in the supermarket sector.
Burnley previously worked alongside Clarke at Asda between 1996 and 2002, where he was supply chain director and was involved in helping to integrate the Leeds-based retailer into Walmart its acquisition in 1999.
Asda has poached one of rival Sainsbury’s top executives as competition among the supermarket chains heats up.
Burnley has spent almost a decade at Sainsbury’s and was promoted to his current role in April previous year.
Instead, Mr Coupe will now face the challenge of additional responsibilities as the grocer enters the busy Christmas trading period while he takes on Mr Burnley’s role on an interim basis.
Sainsbury’s said the recruitment of a successor to Burnley was under way. He leaves Sainsbury’s Retail & Operations teams in excellent shape, along with our best wishes for the future’.
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In recent days, Tesco has unveiled a new scheme aimed at tempting shoppers from rivals by offering to match their prices even when products are on promotion.
