House of Fraser appoints former John Lewis IT boss as new chief information officer

• Former John Lewis IT boss Julian Burnett to join House of Fraser next month
• Burnett is a replacement for Uday Kotla, following a surprise exit last month
• Responsibilities will include developing multichannel offer

Burnett, who left John Lewis in May after three years, will join House of Fraser on October 5.  

He will be a permanent replacement for Uday Kotla, who made a surprise exit from the department store group in August after just four months in the role.

Burnett’s responsibilities will include the “continued development of technology-led solutions… in line with House of Fraser’s strategy to further develop its multichannel offer”.

Prior to John Lewis, Burnett spent two-and-a-half years at Sainsbury’s as its chief technology officer.

House of Fraser chief executive Nigel Oddy said: “His expertise and experience will be invaluable in delivering an IT strategy that further enhances and enables our growing multichannel proposition.”

Former Asos chief information officer Pete Marsden has been acting as the retailer’s chief information officer in the interim.

House of Fraser, which is owned by China’s Sanpower Group, revealed plans for a restructure in July as it aims to implement a more customer-centric approach.

In August the retailer appointed a former civil servant, Mark Madden, as its director of digital products, a newly-created role.