Shares in Pets at Home slip as boss Peter Pritchard reveals he is quitting the company next summer
- Shares in FTSE 250-listed Pets at Home have fallen since the announcement
- The retailer’s boss, Peter Pritchard, has been at the company since 2011
The chief executive of Pets at Home is quitting the company next summer after 11 years with the firm.
Peter Pritchard joined the retailer in 2011 as commercial director, working his way up to chief executive in March 2018.
Shares in the FTSE 250-listed company have fallen today and are currently down 1.88 per cent or 9.40p to 490.00p. A year ago the group’s share price was 392.20p.
Moving on: Peter Pritchard is quitting Pets at Home as the firm’s chief executive
A search for Mr Pritchard’s successor will begin both internally and externally, the company added.
Mr Pritchard will be paid his salary and bonuses for the rest of the year. His pay was £2.1million last year, and he will also be entitled to cash in some of his long-term share plans as the board consider him a ‘good leaver.’
In an update today, Pets at Home said profits in the six months to the end of September are expected to come in at the top end of City expectations.
Pets at Home enjoyed a strong pandemic because stores remained open due to being classed as an ‘essential’ retailer.
It also saw strong growth from a boom in pet ownership during lockdown, with new owners looking to pamper their animals with top-of-the-line products and food.
The robust sales led to the company handing back £30million in business rates relief during the pandemic.
Upbeat: Pets at Home said profits in the six months to the end of September are expected to come in at the top end of City expectations
Business continues to grow and the company also revealed ‘the strong performance witnessed across both parts of the business during the second half of last year has continued throughout the past six months.’
Mr Pritchard said today: ‘Having completed everything that I set out to achieve in 2018, next summer is the right time to take well-earned rest and to hand over the reins to a new leader who will continue this journey.’
During his tenure, Mr Pritchard expanded the business’s interests in additional services, including vets and grooming salons, and helped create a loyalty scheme which now has 6.5million active members.
He also invested £20million in updating the retailer’s digital business and brought sales up to £1billion during the pandemic for the first time in its history.
Sophie Lund-Yates, an equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: ‘The market reaction to Pets at Home’s CEO walking away is simple disappointment.
‘Mr Pritchard has overseen an impressive turnaround, and guided the Pet superstore through astonishing growth during the pandemic.
‘However, this is a natural time to walk away. This isn’t a case of a less savoury ousting or running for the hills.
‘The baton being passed onto any successor is in a much better condition than it was, and the wider challenge for the newcomer will be coming up with ways to keep gathering momentum.’
Boost: A surge in pet ownership during the pandemic helped lift Pets at Home over the past year