Richard Jones: Can he make Tesco the clothing leader?

Richard Jones’s appointment as Tesco’s commercial director for clothing and home last week should not have come as a surprise.

When the grocer poached Jones in 2008 from rival Sainsbury’s, there was widespread speculation that it was only a matter of time before he succeeded larger than life clothing chief Terry Green.

Jones, who spent nearly a year on gardening leave after quitting Sainsbury’s, is regarded as a more typical Tesco-type than Green and, having joined in March 2009 as commercial director, responsible for non-food hard lines, he has been quietly working alongside Green and will now fully grasp the reins.

Jones, 43, is well-respected by his peers. Adrian Mountford, director of general merchandise at Sainsbury’s, holds him in high regard. “He is a great retailer, and both supports and challenges in equal measure,” he says. “He has a strong pedigree and, crucially, understands the customer.”

He is also known as sociable, fun and charismatic - although some say his determination to get things right sometimes comes across as insecurity. Green says Jones is “an exceptionally nice bloke”, while Collins Stewart analyst Greg Lawless says one of his key strengths is that he is “a good people person”.

While at Sainsbury’s, Jones “put non-food on the map”, says Lawless. He spent five years at the grocer, where he built up the Tu clothing brand, which generated around £300m in sales a year by the time he left. He also launched Tu Home when he was given responsibility for general merchandise.

Jones’s sudden departure ruffled feathers at Sainsbury’s HQ. Some saw his defection as an attempt by Tesco to derail Sainsbury’s non-food plans. Sainsbury’s was trailing both Tesco and Asda in non-food sales at the time, and the grocer was just about to launch its high-profile store in Sydenham, southeast London, which boasted a new-format, larger non-food area.

One source says Jones lost a few friends at Sainsbury’s because of his defection. It was not just that he was joining a bitter rival, but the circumstances surrounding his exit. The source says: “Jones was given a lot at Sainsbury’s, but basically left them in the lurch.”

Before joining Sainsbury’s, Jones spent 18 years at Marks & Spencer in various store management, buying, merchandising and procurement roles. He believes retailing is in his blood, because his father also worked for M&S for 36 years as a divisional director.

An avid fan of the MK Dons football team, Jones is likely to step up the pace at Tesco, which, under Green, has made strides in clothing. At last October’s interim results, Tesco said UK clothing sales rose 6.6% for the 26 weeks ending August 29. Green launched clothing online last year, and has set a target of making Tesco’s Florence & Fred business the biggest global fashion brand in five years.

“We’ll all have to keep a close eye on what Richard does next,” says Mountford.

And it won’t just be Sainsbury’s that will be watching keenly. Green made no secret of his desire to become the biggest clothing retailer by volume in the UK, which will mean toppling Asda, M&S and Primark.

It will be a tall order for Jones, but he is already busy laying the foundations.