SHOP DIRECT HOME SHOPPING LIMITED - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Chief Finance and Transformation Officer
Ben leads The Very Group's finance team as it strives to create and protect the future of the business, whilst improving its capabilities and adopting new ways of working. In 2023, his remit was expanded to also include heading-up the continuing development of the business' operating model and introducing new ways of working. Ben was previously European president at Clarks Shoes, where he was responsible for investments including a new European fulfilment centre, delivering digital expansion, and increasing colleague engagement. Prior to joining Clarks Shoes, he was at Walgreens Boots Alliance for six years. As managing director of Boots Opticians, Ben grew the business' market share, revenue, profit, and EBITDA year-on-year. Between 1999 and 2011, Ben held a series of senior finance positions at Procter & Gamble worldwide. He sits on the board of the National Literacy Trust and is a member of the United Nations CFO Taskforce on Sustainable Finance.
Job Titles:
- Corporate Communications
- External Communications Manager
Ed has responsibility for the 100-strong finance function at Very. He reports to chief finance and transformation officer, Ben Fletcher and to our CEO, Robbie Feather. In his previous role at Very, Ed led the financial planning and analysis, investor relations, and external communications team. He headed all key external stakeholder relationships and spearheaded the successful refinancing of the company's £575m bond in 2021. Prior to joining Very in 2020, Ed was CFO and board member at iSmash Group, where he delivered the successful refinancing of the company. Before iSmash, Ed was CFO of Best Dressed Group, where he created a group finance function from eight different European teams, improving financial reporting, management information and cost management. Ed qualified as an accountant with KPMG.
As chief customer officer, Jessica oversees marketing, creative, ecommerce, digital customer experience, and data and analytics. She joined Very in October 2022 as chief marketing officer and since then has spearheaded the group's new brand platform ‘Let's make it sparkle'. The retailer's ad was ranked the second most persuasive Christmas ad of 2023 by Kantar and helped Very UK increase retail sales by +3.4% year-on-year over the 2023 Christmas and Black Friday period. Jessica joined Very from Metro Bank, where she built and led the company's first ever brand and marketing function and was a member of the Executive Committee. Prior to Metro Bank, Jessica spent five years heading NatWest Group's brand team with responsibility across its 10 portfolio brands, including RBS, NatWest, Royal Bank, Coutts and Ulster Bank. Jessica has also worked at Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Sydney, and American Express in London.
Job Titles:
- PR and Sponsorship Manager ( Very.Ie )
Job Titles:
- PR Manager ( Very.Co.Uk )
Nick oversees the entire Very Finance operation, which provides our customers with a comprehensive selection of flexible ways to pay, as well as legal. He is also the executive sponsor for diversity and inclusion, and the group's money laundering officer. Nick joined the executive team as chief risk officer in 2022, having been with the company for nine years. In this role, he led corporate governance, enterprise risk management, legal, ESG, and compliance, including being the main point of contact for the FCA's supervisory team. He is a member of the board of Shop Direct Finance Company (SDFC), the entity that provides The Very Group's flexible ways to pay, and played a central role in FCA authorisation for SDFC in 2016. Prior to joining the company, he was responsible for regulatory matters at MBNA/Bank of America, where he was the lead compliance support for the firm through the implementation of all regulatory changes.
Robbie was appointed CEO in 2024. He joined the Group in 2021 and previously led the company's retail team, which includes all category sourcing, buying, and merchandising, as well as group trading and marketing. He oversaw the development of the company's successful new brand platform and its market-beating retail performance. Formerly CEO of Fenwick, the luxury department store business, Robbie helped to turn around the company and modernise its customer proposition, including launching its online business. He previously held a number of roles at Sainsbury's Argos, including Commercial Director on the Argos board, during which time he oversaw the digital transformation of the business and led the commercial team.
Sam Wright - Chief Commercial Officer
Job Titles:
- Chief Commercial Officer
- Executive
Sam Wright was promoted to the executive team as chief commercial officer, responsible for the retail business, sourcing, and Very Ireland, in 2024. He leads a team of around 550 people, who helped to deliver group retail sales of £1.7bn in FY24. Since joining the group in 2017, he has held several senior retail roles including electrical category director - leading teams across buying, merchandising, design, pricing, and digital trading - commercial strategy director and trading director for the fashion, sports, and home categories. Prior to joining Very, Sam spent seven years at Tesco in a variety of category and commercial roles before working at Unilever in Australia, where he was worked across the personal and homecare portfolio.
Having joined the executive board in 2019, Sarah oversees the The Very Group's people agenda and led work to establish the company's hybrid working model. She has been at The Very Group since 2009, playing an instrumental and wide- ranging role. As people director, she delivered the organisational change and embedded the purpose and values that have supported The Very Group's rapid digital transformation. Sarah was previously head of HR at M&S.
Job Titles:
- Chief Operations and Technology Officer
- Chief Operations and Technology Officer at the Very Group
Sean is chief operations and technology officer at The Very Group, where he is leading the transformation of fulfilment, logistics, customer care and technology. Sean joined Very's executive board in April 2022 after six years as operations director, during which he planned, developed and launched our highly automated fulfilment centre, Skygate, as well as led all outbound logistics and returns. Since it opened in March 2020, the site has reduced the time it takes for orders to be dispatched to as little as 16 minutes and increased the cut off time for next day delivery to 10pm. Prior to joining The Very Group, Sean was chief operating officer at Clipper Logistics plc.