ANDREW Murphy, a senior executive at department store chain John Lewis, has been unveiled as the new chairman of the Scottish Retail Consortium.
The industry body announced yesterday that Mr Murphy, retail director at John Lewis, would succeed current chairman Ken MacKenzie, former head of the Scottish Co-op, on January 1.
The SRC declared that Mr Murphy was taking up the role at a time of rapid economic and political change in Scotland.
It added that Mr Murphy would work with SRC director David Lonsdale and its 16-strong board to "champion the industry and enhance its prospects for growth".
Mr Murphy said: "We are entering a definitive period for the future of the retail industry in Scotland with a huge amount at stake in terms of future employment, the vitality of our town centres and the overall health of the sector in the face of multiple structural challenges."
A graduate of Aberdeen University, Mr Murphy joined John Lewis in 1992 and ran its outlets in Aberdeen and Edinburgh from 2004, before joining the department store chain's retail leadership team in 2009 as director of operations development.
He was appointed to his current board role in 2010. Mr Murphy has responsibility for 24,000 staff and an annual turnover of £3 billion.
Mr Lonsdale said: "Andrew takes on this role at a crucial point for the industry. Scotland is witnessing an unprecedented pace of economic and political change and it is the SRC's role to help inform and shape the emerging public policy debate."
He added: "I would like to record our thanks to Ken for the advice, support and guidance he has given the organisation during his chairmanship over the past six years."
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