Morrisons stuns the City with choice of new chief

The Bradford-based chain has appointed the Irishman, who is currently chief operating officer at Canada's biggest grocery chain Loblaw, in preference to internal candidates.

Morrisons said Mr Philips, 41, will take up the role in March, replacing Marc Bolland who left the company in December to become chief executive of Marks & Spencer.

Finance director Richard Pennycook had been seen as the bookmakers' favourite to win the top job.

In addition to his experience in Canada, Mr Philips has a broad understanding of the supermarket sector having worked for Asda's US parent Wal-Mart for seven years.

Mr Philips worked for Wal-Marts international division between 1998 and 2005.

He started his career as a store manager in New Zealand with Jardine Matheson.

He was poached by Wal-Mart's arch rival Loblow in 2007 where he worked closely with chief executive Allan Leighton – the former Asda chief executive.

Morrisons' chairman Sir Ian Gibson said: "Dalton has a tremendous retail pedigree and a wealth of experience from senior retail positions around the world."

Mr Philips said: "I am really pleased to be joining Morrisons. It's an incredibly exciting business with a terrific history and I'm really looking forward to meeting the team and to the challenge ahead."

Mr Philips, his wife and three young children will be relocating to be near Morrisons' headquarters in Bradford.

Mr Philips was educated at Stowe School and University College Dublin. He completed his MBA at Harvard in 1998.

Morrisons said no details of his remuneration are being released yet and there is still no fixed leaving date for Mr Bolland, who is on gardening leave while a formal departure is negotiated.

The appointment ends months of speculation over Morrisons' plans for a new chief executive.

Mr Bolland is locked into a year's notice period until November, although the group said recently it was negotiating an early exit "compromise agreement" which would free him up to start at M&S.

Charles Stanley retail analyst Sam Hart said that while Mr Philips is not a well-known name in UK retailing, the appointment is in keeping with Morrisons' track record.

"I have never heard of him, but then no one in UK retailing had heard of Marc Bolland before he was appointed," he said.

"It wouldn't be the right cultural fit if they were to pick a high profile figure who would come in and do something very radical – if you take in a relatively unknown executive, they'll be able to integrate more easily into the existing culture."

Mr Philips is accustomed to working twelve-hour six-day weeks and is fluent in Spanish and Portuguese and can speak Italian.

Morrisons' shares fell 1.9p to 292.8p.

Dalton Philips' career history

2007 – to date

Chief operating officer at Loblow, Canada's largest food retailer with 1,000 stores .

2005 – 2007

Chief executive of Brown Thomas Group in Dublin, a luxury goods retailer.

2002 – 2005

Wal-Mart Stores, vice president and chief operating officer, Germany.

2001 – 2002

Wal-Mart Stores, head of retail, Supercenter & Todo Dia Divisions, Sao Paulo.

1999 – 2000

Wal-Mart Stores, commercial director Wal-Mart Supercenter Food Division, Sao Paulo.