Asda chief executive rumour mill: Who does retail think is in the running for the top job?

Jo Whitfield

Whitfield’s shock departure from Matalan this autumn raised a lot of eyebrows among retailers, many of whom were quick to speculate that the exit was due to an imminent announcement in relation to the Asda job. However, no such announcement has emerged and Whitfield said upon her departure that she was leaving to pursue a “portfolio career”.

Whitfield has already spent eight years at Asda, and combined with her five years of experience as chief executive of Co-Op Food, she’s certainly qualified – with one chief executive telling us they’d be “very surprised if she hadn’t been approached for it.”

Andy Clarke

Could Leighton be getting the old band back together? It’s something retailers are certainly whispering about. Clarke ran Asda for six years from 2010, after working his way to the top from managing Asda’s Edinburgh store – a position that Leighton hired him for. Clarke’s time as chief executive was a mixed bag, guiding Asda through record profits, harsh cuts and renewal projects, ultimately ending with Walmart parachuting in China boss Sean Clarke. Andy Clarke is now executive chairman of premium butcher chain Farmison & Co, which he rescued from administration in spring last year. 

Andy Bond

Another Asda Andy that’s been pulled through the rumour mill for his association with Leighton is Andy Bond. Bond became chief operating officer of Asda in the autumn of 2004, but was quickly promoted to chief executive by the following spring, where he remained until 2010. Bond has been the chairman of Poundland-owner Pep&Co ever since, apart from a short break in 2022 due to health reasons. Although his name has been mentioned, Bond may be among the least likely candidates for several reasons, but his ties to Warsaw, Poland are among the main ones. 

Clodagh Moriarty

Grocery giant Sainsbury’s thinks so highly of Moriarty that they have twice created new senior roles just for her – most recently in 2020 when they named her retail and digital director. While she would bring experience across all aspects of running a major grocery chain, Moriarty’s main background has been in ecommerce and she has been the driving force behind Sainsbury’s online business ballooning in recent years. With her experience setting up Chop Chop and SmartShop, and capitalising on the pandemic boom in online grocery shopping, Moriarty could give Asda a much-needed ecommerce edge as it looks to embark on its turnaround. 

Ronny Gottschlich

German-born Gottschlich would certainly be an interesting and slightly left-of-field choice for the role, but his CV in the industry is as good as any. He cut his teeth in the early 2000s at Lidl UK, at a time when the discounter was fighting to establish itself in a grocery sector then absolutely dominated by the big four. He went on to run the discounter’s UK business for six years, setting the foundations for Lidl’s explosive growth which it still enjoys to this day. Along with a relentless focus on price, which Asda currently sorely lacks, Gottschlich would also bring an entrepreneurial and forward-thinking aspect to the role, having been one of the co-founders of quick commerce start-up Gorillas. 

Steve Murrells

One of the shortest odds in this list, Murrells would bring a certain star quality to the top job that some of the names in this list may lack. Not only does he have a huge amount of wider grocery industry experience – stints at Tesco, One Stop and Sainsbury’s – he’s best remembered for his nearly decade-long stint as chief executive of the Co-Op where he worked alongside Allan Leighton. Asda desperately needs an experienced hand at the tiller, and Murrells would provide that, as well as an established partnership with the retailer’s new chair. 

Tracey Clements

The current European convenience boss for BP, Tracey Clements has had a long and storied career in retail and more specifically in grocery. She cut her teeth at Tesco in the early 2000s under legendary retail leader Sir Terry Leahy, before moving on, by way of three years as the chief executive of c-store retailer One Stop – to Boots, where she ran the health and beauty giant’s sprawling store network and intricate supply chain. Hugely respected in the industry, few would be better placed than Clements to help Asda realise its strategic goals of capturing the growing UK convenience market.

Ashwin Prasad

Another UK grocery retail rising star, Tesco chief commercial officer Ashwin Prasad has long been thought of as a future supermarket chief executive. Young, energetic and regarded as an excellent man manager, Prasad would bring a huge amount of energy and fresh ideas to an Asda business that appears to be in desperate need of both. A Harvard Business School alumni, with experience of working around the world, Prasad could well be Asda’s answer to Morrisons and its dynamic new chief executive Rami Baitiéh.