As the country casts its votes in the general election, Retail Week imagines what a cabinet made up of bold and capable retail leaders might look like
Prime minister: Lord Wolfson, chief executive, Next
The Next boss would be the first lord to be prime minister since the Marquess of Salisbury more than a century ago, but is a natural for the position.
Wolfson is retail’s first among equals. The industry hangs on his every word for his interpretation of the retail landscape and economy. Over the years, he has also spoken out on wider policy issues, such as planning and Brexit, and made Next a soaraway success through his clarity of purpose and flawless follow-through to deliver it.
Qualities that would enable him to set the direction for the nation and ensure policy is successfully enacted.
Deputy prime minister: Ken Murphy, chief executive, Tesco
As the boss of the biggest retailer, Murphy’s credentials for a senior role in a retail cabinet are unquestionable. Daily basis, Murphy is responsible for over 330,000 staff and his decisions affect a business with an annual turnover in excess of £65bn.
Since taking the top job at Tesco in 2020, Murphy has quietly asserted his control and supercharged growth. His strategic decision to place Clubcard at the heart of everything the grocer does has proven to be the kind of technocratic masterstroke that Rishi Sunak could only dream of.
He’s also proven unflappable in the face of catastrophe, calmly navigating through Covid and the cost-of-living crisis. Quietly reassuring in public, with a firm hand on the tiller behind the scenes – he’s the personification of Teddy Roosevelt’s ‘speak softly and carry a big stick’ mantra.
Chancellor of the exchequer: Carl Cowling, chief executive, WHSmith
WHSmith, led by Cowling, is renowned for its ability to find cost savings and generate profit – whether in an often inauspicious environment such as the high street or the identification of new opportunities such as airports.
That ability to manage the coffers so consummately makes Cowling an obvious chancellor as the UK faces into tough financial times with stretched budgets.
Cowling, who in 2023 was named Retail Leader of the Year at the Retail Week Awards, learned the value of money in the tough world of electricals retail. “I came up in an environment where you had to look after every pound,” he recalled. An attitude that will help him at the Treasury.
Home secretary: Shirine Khoury-Haq, chief executive, Co-op Group
Khoury-Haq has the heft, resilience and understanding to hold this key position.
Having confronted many personal challenges in her life, including being the target of racism, she is attuned to the types of issues facing the country’s citizens.
And, as the boss of the Co-op, founded on enlightened principles and one of the UK’s most active corporate citizens on a wide variety of issues, Khoury-Haq has experience of driving change and bringing people with her.
She has been vocal on the blight of retail crime and would act to address it as well as the associated antisocial behaviour that have plagued town centres across the country.
Foreign secretary: Thierry Garnier, group chief executive, Kingfisher
Although this role is currently occupied by former prime minister Lord David Cameron, Garnier is arguably capable of bringing an even greater level of statesmanship to the job.
A European retailer, Kingfisher has operations in eight different countries and is owner of B&Q and Screwfix. That, as well as Garnier’s previous experience, makes him an ideal FO candidate.
Garnier spent 22 years at Carrefour, many of them leading operations in China, where he was also VP of both the China General Chamber of Commerce and the China Retailers and Franchise Association – critical expertise in a country that is likely to be a preoccupation of any foreign secretary.
Defence secretary: Alex Baldock, chief executive, Currys
Straight-backed, clean-shaven, with gleaming shoes and a haircut you could set your watch to, Baldock exudes a military bearing. He wouldn’t look out of place inspecting the Trooping the Colour parade.
The brief also chimes with Baldock’s personal passions. The Currys boss is an avid military history buff, with a particular fondness for ‘soldier’s soldier’, William, 1st Viscount Slim – hero of the ‘forgotten army’ in Burma during the Second World War.
In an increasingly uncertain geopolitical environment, Baldock’s experience fending off potental foreign takeovers of Currys would also be invaluable – he faced down the unwanted attention of both Elliott Advisers and Alibaba. Putin or Xi Jinping would be child’s play.
Health secretary: Matt Moulding, founder and chief executive, THG
The many pictures circulated of Moulding modelling rippling abs sans chemise are not the only reason he’s a top choice for health secretary.
Nutrition-focused THG’s founder has a Mark Wahlberg-style obsession with his daily workout and has confessed to waking up as early as 3am to visit the gym before a flight – just in case it gets delayed and he misses the chance to work out when he lands.
He’s sure to have the medical priorities under control too, with a GP on staff and an in-house medical centre offering treatment and diagnostics for employees.
That being said, he’ll have to work on the optics of his 30-shot-a-day espresso habit.
Justice secretary: Tim Steiner, founder and chief executive, Ocado
Ocado’s Steiner is many things: a tech-savvy businessman, visionary entrepreneur and hard-bitten City veteran all rolled into one. He’s also no stranger to the intricate workings of the British legal system.
Steiner is perhaps one of the most litigious men in retail.
In the last five years, Steiner and Ocado have seen off legal action from Norwegian robotics firm AutoStore over patent infringement, and successfully sued former employees Jonathan Faiman and Jon Hilary over information theft.
He may also be gearing up to launch legal action against Ocado Retail partner Marks & Spencer over deal terms.
Business and trade secretary: Stuart Machin, chief executive, M&S
Having first taken Marks & Spencer’s food business to new heights, then steered the entire company to renewed success, Machin is perfectly placed to take on the business brief.
He knows what makes business tick at all levels: running one, understanding a wide range of suppliers from tech firms to farmers, and navigating the intricacies of policy in planning, such as the controversial redevelopment of the Marble Arch store or the fall-out from Brexit.
Speaking at this week’s M&S AGM, Machin detailed the culture he is instilling at M&S of constantly stretching ambition by fostering a mindset of ‘positive’ dissatisfaction’. As the UK seeks to inject energy into its economy, Machin has the skills to provide a vision of success for UK Plc and the practical knowledge to deliver it.
Education secretary: John Roberts, founder and chief executive, AO
The entrepreneurial Roberts is as driven creating opportunities for the young as he is building his AO business.
Earlier this year, Roberts, who is involved with young people’s organisations such as OnSide Youth Zones, spoke out on the need to address the fact that “too many kids have a bad start in life and they don’t need to”.
He said it was an “understatement to say that politicians aren’t doing enough. The problem is that kids don’t vote, so politicians don’t care”.
As education secretary, he would be in a position to change that and would bring endless energy to the role.
Secretary for housing and communities: David Wood, chief executive, Wickes
An outspoken advocate for improvements to Britain’s energy-inefficient housing stock, Wood’s expertise could give this area of government a fresh coat of paint. His first mission would be to remove VAT from energy-saving materials like insulation as he’s been vocal about keeping household bills down.
And, as a down-to-earth people leader, Wood has made sure his workers have a good work-life balance by making investments in flexible working opportunities, which stands him in good stead to be an advocate for communities.
Wickes’ boss since 2019, the cabinet could benefit from his stability too – given that the ministership has been occupied by no less than 10 people in as many years.
Transport secretary: Mohsin Issa, co-owner, Asda
It seems only fitting that one of the founders of the UK’s largest petrol forecourt brands – EG – should be responsible for transport. No one in the country has been responsible for more camping holiday fill-ups, after all.
Issa is no 20th-century petroleum baron, clinging to the combustible engines of the past. He has been the driving force at Asda in electrifying the grocer’s forecourt estate.
It’s fair to say that Mohsin Issa is also a bit of an aviation enthusiast, part-owning at least two private jets. Quite what his experience of the public transport network is is another question entirely.
He’d also be no stranger to the limelight brought by political office, given the interest the tabloids have taken in his private life.
Secretary for work and pensions: Lyssa McGowan, chief executive, Pets at Home
With Pets at Home voted top by employees in Retail Week and WorkLs’ ranking of the best places to work in retail, McGowan knows a thing or two about what matters most to workers.
Pets at Home and its 15,000 employees scored top marks for staff empowerment, ie pride, satisfaction, reward and recognition, wellbeing, and information sharing.
McGowan also devised wellbeing and happiness strategies with the Retail Trust to make sure her staff are highly engaged – something that has eluded the UK government thus far with 90% of the workforce reporting they’re unhappy at work.
Secretary for culture, media and sport: Jo Whitfield, chief executive, Matalan
Historically something of a nebulous office, responsible for a grab bag of differing disciplines that err more towards the UK’s soft power strengths.
Whitfield would be very at home at the DCMS. Her work in philanthropy and the charity sector has made waves, having founded The Grocery Girls network in 2018 and been an ambassador for social enterprise Girls Out Loud. She’s also the retail sector lead at the Women’s Business Council UK.
Outside of her work empowering women in the male-dominated world of food retail, the Matalan chief has also been a cultural champion for the North West, serving as a non-executive board member of the Manchester International Festival.
Secretary for energy and net zero: Peter Jelkeby, chief executive and chief sustainability officer, Ikea UK
Last month, it was revealed by NatCen that Britons’ trust in the government and politicians was at a record low, so what could be better to combat disenchantment and wearisome spin than a straightforward Swede?
Jelkeby is also Ikea’s chief sustainability officer, and he’s been storming ahead with electric delivery fleets, order collections at Tesco, new recycling programmes, powering stores with renewable energy, and even testing green boot sales in the car park.
His approach is always transparent; he has announced delays to the Oxford Street flagship store opening twice now because of a leaky basement and other structural problems, and is adamant that he won’t compromise on makingng the store as sustainable as possible, even if it means opening late.
Secretary for science, innovation and tech: Hannah Gibson, chief executive, Ocado Retail
Gibson brings strong credentials to the brief on two fronts. The first is she has real-world political experience, having spent time as a senior policy adviser to 10 Downing Street between 2010 and 2012, focusing on economic growth around technology, small businesses and start-ups.
Equally at home with the technical jargon as striding the corridors of power, Gibson has also been a central player in the rise of Ocado and its suite of technological solutions.
In over a decade with the business, she’s worked on everything from product and merchandising through to developing its Zoom rapid delivery channel and the launch of the Ocado Smart Platform.
Secretary for environment and rural affairs: Rami Baitiéh, chief executive, Morrisons
The new Morrisons CEO’s attention to detail and work ethic have already become the stuff of legend.
And, while he may not have been long on these shores, he’s already taken like a duck to water to the UK’s rolling fields and farms.
As boss of the UK’s second largest food producer and British farming’s largest single customer, it’s fitting that Baitiéh seems happiest when he’s picking fruit or inspecting free-range chickens destined for the grocer’s Market Street range.
Not content with getting his hands dirty with suppliers, Baitiéh has also led on Morrisons’ ‘Sustainable Farm Network’ – a scheme providing suppliers with practical advice and education on achieving net zero emissions.
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