Partner Article

Former Costcutter chief executive joins KPMG Leeds office

Leeds-based KPMG has hired Nick Ivel, the former group chief executive of Costcutter Supermarkets, as a consultant to advise the firm’s clients on their convenience store strategy.

Ivel, who was with York-based Costcutter for 14 years, helped push the annual turnover of the group from £198m to £650m, developing it into one of the premium convenience Symbol Group brands in the UK.

KPMG employs over 700 people in Leeds and is currently developing a new 60,000 square feet HQ in the city’s Sovereign Street area. Ivel will work across the UK out of the Leeds’ office.

David McCorquodale, head of retail at KPMG, said: “With numerous players in the convenience store sector all chasing the same sliver of market share, the time is ripe for further consolidation in the market. I am delighted to be able to lean on Nick’s extensive experience to guide and advise our clients on their future strategy in this crowded market place. We are expecting to see transaction levels spike again in this sector.”

Nick Ivel added: “This is a very exciting and changing sector, with a lot of consolidation still to happen. Costcutter’s recently announced joint venture with Palmer and Harvey is simply the tip of the iceberg and I expect to see many other players considering a similar strategy.”

Earlier this year Costcutter announced a new distribution agreement with Palmer and Harvey (P&H). The joint venture, called The Buyco, allows Costcutter to meet the needs of its independent retailers and all of P&H’s existing independent retailers more efficiently, providing Costcutter Supermarkets Group with access to the largest volume buying power in the sector.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Anna Addison .