Philip Clarke (businessman)

Philip Andrew Clarke (born 8 March 1960) is a British businessman. He served as the chief executive officer of Tesco plc until 1 September 2014.[1]

Philip Clarke
Born
Philip Andrew Clarke

(1960-03-08) 8 March 1960 (age 64)
NationalityBritish
Alma materUniversity of Liverpool
OccupationBusinessman
Years active1981–present
Term2011–2014
PredecessorSir Terry Leahy
SuccessorDave Lewis
SpouseLinda Clarke
Children2

Biography

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Early life

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He was born in Liverpool, where his father was a Tesco store manager on the Wirral for many years, and gave Clarke his first job as a schoolboy in 1974.[2]

He was educated at the Liverpool Blue Coat School[citation needed] and went on to graduate with an economics degree from the University of Liverpool.[3]

Career

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Having initially stacked shelves at his local Tesco, he returned after graduating to join the Tesco Management Training Programme in 1981.[4] Appointed to the Board of Directors in 1998,[5] he then went on to replace Sir Terry Leahy in 2011. He sits on the board of directors of the Consumer Goods Forum.[6]

In July 2014 Philip announced that he was leaving Tesco's board, effective 1 October 2014, which was brought forward to 1 September 2014.[7]

Clarke was due to have a party celebrating 40 years at Tesco but this was cancelled the day before suggesting that the departure came sooner than expected. His leaving came after a disastrous 3 years overseeing the company's first profit warning in 20 years, and an accounting scandal in 2014.[8]

Personal life

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He lives in Hertfordshire with his wife, Linda, and has two children.[9]

References

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  1. ^ Codd, Danielle (19 April 2011). "BBC News - Profile: Who is Tesco's new boss Philip Clarke?". Bbc.co.uk. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  2. ^ "Phillip Clarke". European CEO. 3 April 2012. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  3. ^ "Relentless rise to the top of Tesco's 'Mr Supply Chain'". London Evening Standard. 9 June 2010. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
  4. ^ "Philip Clarke: the new man behind Tesco". Telegraph. London. 28 February 2010. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  5. ^ "Board of Directors - Tesco PLC". Ar2010.tescoplc.com. Archived from the original on 10 September 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  6. ^ Consumer Goods Forum website, Board of Directors Archived 31 August 2012 at the Wayback Machine
  7. ^ "Tesco boss Philip Clarke expresses relief over exit". BBC News. 21 July 2014. Retrieved 21 July 2014.
  8. ^ Felsted, Andrea (21 July 2014). "Philip Clarke failed to build on Leahy legacy at Tesco". Financial Times. Retrieved 30 September 2020.
  9. ^ Zoe Wood and Graeme Wearden (8 June 2010). "Philip Clarke: a profile of Tesco's next chief executive | Business". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
Business positions
Preceded by CEO of Tesco
2011–2014
Succeeded by