Marshalls man for Thorntons

By FIONA WALSH
Updated:

 

CONFECTIONERY group Thorntons is bringing in a new chairman, Chris Burnett, who heads the Marshalls building products group.

Current chairman John Thornton, grandson of the group's founder, is to retire from the chair on reaching 60 but will remain on the board as a non-executive. He has been with the group since 1966.

Burnett had already announced his decision to leave Marshalls once a successor is found. He is a former chairman of Lee Cooper and Kunick and was also chief executive of Silentnight.

Founded in 1911 by Joseph Thornton, the group has had a chequered profits history although it recently reported an 11% increase in first-half profits to £12.1m. The current period will be important for the full-year outcome - the two-week run-up to Easter usually accounts for some 10% of annual turnover.

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