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Birmingham Post
Birmingham Post
Business
Jon Robinson

Senior shake-up announced by Very and Littlewoods owner

The group behind the Very and Littlewoods brands has announced a senior hire and a promotion to chief operating officer.

The Very Group has appointed Charlotte Heiss as group general counsel and company secretary.

She will join the Speke-headquartered business’ executive team in May and report to group CEO, Henry Birch.

READ MORE: Playstation 5 and Apple Airpods sales give The Very Group Christmas cheer

Operations director Sean Hallows has also been promoted to the role of chief operating officer, joining the executive team and also reporting to Mr Birch.

Mr Hallows will succeed Phil Hackney, who will step down in April after six years in the role.

Charlotte Heiss has worked at RSA for more than 11 years and previously was managing associate at Linklaters.

Charlotte Heiss, group general counsel and company secretary at The Very Group (The Very Group)

Mr Hallows first joined The Very Group in June 2021 having been operations development director at Shop Direct from July 2016.

He has previously worked for the likes of Clipper Logistics Group, Bidvest Foodservice and Poundland.

Mr Hackney has been the group's chief operating officer since February 2016 and has held roles with Pets at Home, Tech Data and Boots.

Mr Birch said: "Attracting someone of Charlotte’s calibre to the role of general counsel is testament to the strength of our business and an important step in our continued development.

"She will play a vital role in reinforcing good governance and leading our business’ response on legal, regulatory and compliance matters.

"Sean is a hugely respected leader within our business and brings industry-leading experience, having launched and operated Skygate, one of the UK’s most advanced fulfilment centres.

Sean Hallows has been promoted to chief operating officer at The Very Group (The Very Group)

"He has worked closely with Phil and is absolutely the right person to become our new chief operating officer as we continue to invest in the transformation of fulfilment, logistics and customer care.

"I want to say a massive thank you to Phil, who is responsible for some of the most successful and important developments in our business over the last decade.

"He is a dedicated, talented and universally respected leader, who leaves an exceptional legacy at The Very Group. We wish him all the very best."

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