Profile: Richard Pennycook, non-executive director, The Hut Group

Richard Pennycook is a man who is addicted to corporate drama. His CV is peppered with turnarounds and management buyouts and his new role at The Hut Group might enable him to add an IPO launch to his already impressive repertoire of corporate achievements.

Pennycook, who revealed in June his intention to leave his role as group finance director of Morrisons next year, joins the etailer as it seeks to relaunch its bid to float on the stock market after putting it on ice earlier this year.

It’s a business Pennycook, who may also potentially chair the retailer when it floats, has long admired.

“The Hut has the benefit of a strong technology platform and is able to use data to gain insight into the customer, which is fundamental,” he says.

“At the start of the dot com development, it was easy to start a business. But if you didn’t have good technology or a strong back office you would struggle to scale the business.”

Although Pennycook only last week officially joined the retailer’s board, which is chaired by former Matalan boss Angus Monro and counts big hitters including Sir Terry Leahy and Sir Stuart Rose among its investors, he has long taken an interest in the business.

“I’ve known Matt [Moulding, chief executive of The Hut Group] for years and we’ve talked about the development of his business for some time, especially as I’ve been thinking about how on earth to do fresh food online,” he says. “Digital can’t be ignored. It’s a fundamental part of the future of retail.”

In recent times, Pennycook has rebranded himself as one of online’s new disciples and is leading Morrisons’ digital strategy.

The grocer was a late entrant to the online world but is to launch its first site, wine specialist Morrisonscellar.com, soon. Pennycook is also chairman of Kiddicare, the children’s goods retailer that Morrisons acquired last year.

Pennycook was even pitted against The Hut Group in the race to buy the highly sought-after retailer.

However, the online retail world is fairly new for Pennycook, who has focused on turnarounds throughout his career.

He entered the retail sector in a baptism of fire. His first role after he left accountant Arthur Andersen was at department store group Allders, where he was involved in its high-profile management buyout from Hanson and subsequent flotation.

However, he says no challenge has been greater than Morrisons. Pennycook joined the grocer a year after it completed its £3bn takeover of Safeway in 2004, which had not run smoothly.

“It was such a big organisation. Morrisons had 40,000 staff and Safeway had 80,000, and it was in deep trouble,” he says.

In the city brokers were baying for blood and Pennycook’s role in stabilising the business thrust him into the spotlight.

“It was an important part of the role when I arrived at Morrisons. There was no hiding, we were in the newspapers every other day,” he recalls.

Pennycook did the seemingly impossible and helped restore the City’s faith in the grocer.

He says talking to the City is a part of the job that he enjoys and that it’s a great discipline to have. His flair for communicating with analysts stands him in good stead for when The Hut Group launches its IPO.

Outside the boardroom, Pennycook is a bit of a thrill-seeker – he is an adept pilot in his spare time.

“When I was young I wanted to be a fighter pilot. I was all about Top Gun and all that stuff. Unfortunately, a trip to the opticians when I was 12 knocked that on the head, so overnight I thought I’d pursue the second most exciting career path – chartered accountancy,” Pennycook quips.

However, he insists he is quite at home in the pilot’s seat. With his credentials, Pennycook should ensure The Hut Group continues to fly high.