British Retail Consortium appoints new chair
The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has appointed Jo Whitfield CBE as chair-elect.
She will succeed Andy Higginson when his tenure comes to an end on 2nd October 2025.
Whitfield has 25 years’ experience in retail, having held leadership roles at Matalan, the Co-operative Group, and Asda.
She is currently a non-executive and audit chair at Asda and a non-executive and chair of Ethics Committee at Factory International, which hosts the Manchester International Festival.
Whitfield previously founded and chaired The Grocery Girls network and was an advisor and retail sector lead on the Women’s Business Council. She also played a leading industry role campaigning alongside the BRC to achieve better safety recognition and a change to the law to protect retail workers.
She will be joined by Eve Williams, as a new non-executive director on the BRC board. Eve Williams is currently vice president and general manager of eBay UK.
Jo Whitfield said: “I’m honoured to be joining the BRC as its first female chair, and to be supporting Helen (Dickinson) and her team at such a pivotal time. Retail is an incredibly valuable industry, employing over 3 million people who support their families through their work. It’s also uniquely inclusive and many of us have built our careers from the shop floor or from working-class backgrounds, rising into leadership roles and enjoying fulfilling careers.”
“Retailers are at the heart of communities, and we’re acutely aware of the many government policies currently under consideration that could either support or hinder our industry. This is a critical moment for us all and now more than ever, we need a strong, united voice. I look forward to working closely with Helen and the team to ensure the interests of our industry are championed and protected.”
Helen Dickinson, chief executive at the BRC, added: “Jo and Eve join the board as we deal with multiple public policy headwinds and more to do on big issues like climate change, inclusion, and creating the right environment for growth and investment. I know how passionate they both are on these areas and particularly on people so it’s great to welcome two more women to our board and our first female chair.
“It has been a pleasure working with Andy and I would like to thank him for his pragmatic, down to earth advice, leadership and support over the past two and half years. We are a stronger organisation for it.”