REG - Franchise Brands PLC - Appointment of CFO and Group Finance Director

Franchise BrandsAnnouncement

13/02/2025 07:00

For best results when printing this announcement, please click on link below:
https://newsfile.refinitiv.com/getnewsfile/v1/story?guid=urn:newsml:reuters.com:20250213:nRSM9215Wa&default-theme=true

RNS Number : 9215W  Franchise Brands PLC  13 February 2025

13 February 2025

FRANCHISE BRANDS PLC

("Franchise Brands", the "Group" or the "Company")

 

Appointment of Chief Financial Officer and Group Finance Director

The Board of Franchise Brands is pleased to announce the appointments of a
Chief Financial Officer ("CFO") and a Group Finance Director.

Over the last six months, the Group has conducted a comprehensive search for a
new CFO and has considered a number of external candidates from a range of
AIM, Main Market and private equity backed company backgrounds, alongside
internal candidates. During this time, the Board has also considered the wider
needs of the business following the appointment of Peter Molloy in late 2024
as Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") and the Group's focus on the "One Franchise
Brands" strategic initiative. This strategic initiative was launched by Peter
to accelerate the pace of integrating the Group into one business to enhance
sales, increase operational efficiency and reduce debt.

The Board has concluded that the optimal team to support Peter is an enhanced
finance team providing both commercial and financial support. The roles of CFO
and Commercial Director are therefore being combined under the role of the
CFO, and a new position of Group Finance Director (non-board) has been
created.

Andrew Mallows, the current interim CFO, will be appointed CFO on a permanent
basis, reflecting his experience as CFO and Commercial Director in the eight
years he has been with the business. Beth Peace, who has been with the
business since 2019 and is currently Finance Director in the Water &
Waste Services Division, will be appointed Group Finance Director.  Peter
has worked with Andrew and Beth for many years and this experienced, proven
team with a strong track record of delivery will provide Peter and his
management team with valuable support.

In addition, Mark Boxall, who was appointed as Chief Operating Officer ("COO")
(non-Board) last year, will continue to be responsible for driving
integration, with a particular focus in the short term on the rollout of
common Group-wide IT systems, which are a key part of the One Franchise Brands
strategy.

The strengthened Group finance team will also be supported by Louise George,
who was recently appointed to the board as an independent non-executive
director and Chair of the Audit Committee. Louise has over 20 years of
board-level experience with AIM-quoted companies, including substantial
experience in franchised businesses.

 

Andrew Mallows, CFO, said:

 

"Since joining the Group eight years ago, I have been both CFO and Commercial
Director. I now look forward to combining those two roles as CFO in the new
structure that supports Peter as CEO and working with Mark as COO in executing
the One Franchise Brands strategy. I am very pleased that we are continuing to
develop talent from within the Group with the appointment of Beth as Group
Finance Director and look forward to working closely with her in her new
role."

 

Stephen Hemsley, Executive Chairman, said:

 

"I am delighted that Andrew has accepted the role of CFO on a permanent basis
and with Beth's appointment as Group Finance Director. Andrew and Beth are a
proven team who have worked with Peter for many years and supported each other
through periods of rapid growth and the more challenging Covid years. I am,
therefore, confident that they will provide the Group with excellent financial
leadership and that, in combination with Peter and Mark, we have a strong team
to execute our near-term strategy of integrating the Group into one business
to enhance sales, increase operational efficiency and reduce debt."

 

 

Enquiries:

 Franchise Brands plc                                                 + 44 (0) 1625 813231
 Stephen Hemsley, Executive Chairman

 Peter Molloy, CEO
 Andrew Mallows, CFO
 Julia Choudhury, Corporate Development Director

 Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited (Nominated Adviser and Joint Broker)  +44 (0) 20 7710 7600
 Matthew Blawat
 Nick Harland

 Allenby Capital Limited (Joint Broker)                               +44 (0) 20 3328 5656
 Jeremy Porter / Liz Kirchner (Corporate Finance)
 Amrit Nahal / Joscelin Pinnington (Sales & Corporate Broking)

 Dowgate Capital Limited (Joint Broker)                               +44 (0) 20 3903 7715
 James Serjeant (Corporate Broking)
 Malar Velaigam / Colin Climie (Sales)

 MHP Group (Financial PR)                                             +44 (0) 20 3128 8100
 Katie Hunt / Hugo Harris                                             +44 (0) 7884 494112
                                                                      franchisebrands@mhpgroup.com

About Franchise Brands plc

Franchise Brands is an international, multi-brand franchisor focused on B2B
van-based service with seven franchise brands and a presence in 10 countries
across the UK, North America and Europe. The Group is focused on building
market-leading businesses primarily via a franchise model and has a combined
network of over 625 franchisees.

The Company owns several market-leading brands with long trading histories,
including Pirtek in Europe, Filta, Metro Rod and Metro Plumb, all of which
benefit from the Group's central support services, particularly technology,
marketing, and finance. At the heart of Franchise Brands' business-building
strategy is helping its franchisees grow their businesses: "as they grow, we
grow".

Franchise Brands employs over 700 people across the Group and over 3,000
people in the franchise community.

For further information, visit www.franchisebrands.co.uk
(http://www.franchisebrands.co.uk)

This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact
rns@lseg.com (mailto:rns@lseg.com)
 or visit
www.rns.com (http://www.rns.com/)
.

RNS may use your IP address to confirm compliance with the terms and conditions, to analyse how you engage with the information contained in this communication, and to share such analysis on an anonymised basis with others as part of our commercial services. For further information about how RNS and the London Stock Exchange use the personal data you provide us, please see our
Privacy Policy (https://www.lseg.com/privacy-and-cookie-policy)
.   END  BOAVLLFFELLFBBZ