Asda co-owner Mohsin Issa steps back as hunt for CEO continues

Asda co-owner Mohsin Issa has confirmed he will step down from running the supermarket and will hand over the reins to chairman Lord Stuart Rose and the management team.

Asda said Mr Issa will this week leave his executive role to concentrate on his recently announced move to become sole chief executive of the petrol station forecourts business, EG Group.

Mr Issa will remain co-owner of the chain, alongside private equity backer TDR Capital, and a non-executive on the board.

It comes as debt-laden Asda continues its hunt for a chief executive to lead the firm, saying it will update “in due course”.

Lord Rose will take on Mr Issa’s executive responsibilities at Asda on an interim basis, alongside TDR partner Rob Hattrell and the supermarket’s existing management team.

Mr Issa said: “I have decided now is the right time for me to step back from my oversight role at Asda to focus on EG Group as sole chief executive.

“It is a very exciting time for EG Group, and I am looking forward to focusing on the business while supporting Stuart, Rob and the leadership team in my capacity as a shareholder of Asda.”

Lord Rose said: “We respect Mohsin’s decision to move on from his role at Asda where his work is complete to be the sole chief executive of EG Group.

“We are very grateful to Mohsin for the role he has played in overseeing Asda.”

Mr Issa had already signalled in March that he planned to hand over the daily running of the chain.

He said at the time that he was carrying out a “reset” of the company before hiring a new chief.

Brothers Zuber and Mohsin Issa bought Asda from Walmart in 2020, in a £6.8 billion deal with the backing of TDR Capital.

Zuber Issa sold his stake in Asda TDR Capital in June and also said he would step down as co-chief executive of EG Group after reaching an agreement to buy its remaining UK forecourt business and some food service sites for £228 million.

Zuber will keep his shareholding in EG Group and continue as a non-executive director, while his brother Mohsin will become sole chief executive once the deal completes, which is expected on October 31.

Walmart still has a 10% holding in the supermarket group, while TDR Capital owns a 67.5% stake and Mr Issa the remaining 22.5%.

Asda’s performance has been lagging behind its peers and Lord Rose was recently reported saying he was “embarrassed” by its performance under his supervision, and believed Mohsin Issa should step back.

The UK’s third-largest supermarket chain revealed last month that its sales dropped further over the latest quarter as it lost more customers to its largest rivals.

It saw total revenues, excluding fuel, rise 2% for the first half of 2024, although like-for-like sales slipped by 2.1%.

Revenues in the second quarter of the year were down 2.2%, with a 5.3% like-for-like decline, as its sales slump accelerated.

The latest industry figures from Kantar showed that Asda’s market share slipped further over the summer, down to 12.6% in the 12 weeks to September 1, from 13.8% a year ago.