Nisa Retail dismisses claims that teenager could be new CEO

The Sunday Times led its business section yesterday with the story that Harris Aslam has launched a campaign to become CEO of the member-owned convenience store group. It claimed that Mr Aslam, who sits on the board as a non-executive director, has stepped down from the nominations committe and informed the chairman that he might enter the race to succeed Neil Turton.

Nisa announced earlier this month that Mr Turton would be leaving next spring after 23 years in the Scunthorpe-based business, which has sales of £1.6bn.

Amanda Jones, chief operating officer, is also leaving for a new post at Conviviality Retail.

The mutual, which supplies 2,500 independent stores, is relaunching more than 1,300 lines in its own-label range and has introduced new store formats and re-engineered its distribution service following its split from long-standing customer Costcutter, which went into partnership with rival wholesaler Palmer and Harvey.

According to Nisa’s corporate website, Mr Aslam has vast experience in the retail industry with his family being involved in the sector for 40 years.

He is also “a youth board director” with retailer B&Q.

Ian Bishop, marketing director at Nisa, told The Yorkshire Post: “Our chairman has put in place a robust recruitment strategy to find a chief executive with the right mix of experience and ambition for Nisa. Nisa has grown in partnership with its members and we will continue to support their growth by securing the best and most experienced management talent for our business.”