Costa Coffee announces appointment of new chief executive

Costa Coffee has announced that Dominic Paul will step down as chief executive of the company at the end of the month and will be succeeded by Jill McDonald.

Paul, who joined the company in 2016, led Costa through its demerger from Whitbread and its sale to the Coca-Cola Company (which completed in January). He will step down on 30 November, with McDonald officially taking over from 2 December.

McDonald was most recently managing director of clothing and home for Marks & Spencer and serves on the board of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG) as a non-executive director.

She was previously chief executive of Halfords Group from 2015 to 2017 and has held three roles with McDonald's, including as UK chief executive and division president, North Europe from 2006 to 2015. From 1990 to 2006, she worked for British Airways, including as global head of marketing.

McDonald said: "I have long been a fan of Costa and have watched the company grow in the UK and far beyond. I look forward to joining the Costa leadership team and building on the great foundation and growth potential in the business."

She will report to Jennifer Mann, president of global ventures for the Coca-Cola Company. Mann said: "Dominic led a significant reshaping of Costa's international footprint, the expansion of the brand across multiple new platforms and a wide-ranging reset of the core UK business strategy.

"I am excited to welcome Jill to the Costa family. Her track record, depth of international experience and excitement about joining our business makes her an ideal leader to build on the great work of Dominic and the rest of the Costa team."

Paul will remain with Costa as a special advisor into February 2020, supporting the transition.

Founded in London by Italian brothers Sergio and Bruno Costa in 1971, Costa Coffee operates more than 2,600 coffee shops in the UK and more than 1,300 in 31 international markets.