Bi-Lo Holdings, the Jacksonville-based parent company of the Winn-Dixie, Bi-Lo and Harveys supermarket chains, is bringing in an Australian supermarket executive as its new CEO.
The company announced Thursday that Ian McLeod, former managing director of the Coles grocery chain in Australia, will become president and chief executive officer March 2.
McLeod succeeds Randall Onstead, who said three weeks ago he would step down March 1.
Coles operates about 2,300 grocery, liquor and convenience stores across Australia, including 762 supermarkets.
Ironically, some of those supermarkets operate under the name Bi-Lo, although most have been converted to Coles.
McLeod left his position at Coles in July to become group commercial director for Coles’ parent company, Wesfarmers Group, a diversified Australian corporation.
“I am excited to move to the U.S. and join the team at this important time,” McLeod said in a news release.
“I look forward to leveraging my experience to help build upon Bi-Lo Holdings’ reputation by serving our loyal customers even better, attracting new customers through great quality and value and further strengthening our competitive position within the industry,” he said.
McLeod has not yet arrived at Bi-Lo’s offices at 5050 Edgewood Court and was not available for comment Thursday.
Wesfarmers appointed McLeod as head of the supermarket chain when it bought Coles in 2007.
“Ian’s success with the Coles Division, which has more than doubled earnings before interest and tax and helped generate significant shareholder value for the Wesfarmers Group, highlights his credentials as a world class retailer and leader,” Wesfarmers Managing Director Richard Goyder said in a news release when McLeod left his position at Coles.
“By enhancing the customer experience, improving our fresh food offering and on-shelf availability, as well as continued commitment to everyday low prices, the Coles business is unrecognizable from the one we purchased in 2007,” Goyder said.
Before joining Coles, McLeod was CEO of a British retail chain called Halfords Group Plc.
While he was in Great Britain, McLeod was non-executive director of the Fulham Football Club. That’s the British soccer team now owned by Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shad Khan.
According to Bi-Lo, Coles had annual revenue of $35.2 billion when McLeod left.
Bi-Lo operates 801 supermarkets in eight Southeastern states and had $7.7 billion in revenue in the first nine months of 2013, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission filing.
Bi-Lo had filed with the SEC for an initial public offering of stock, but it withdrew those plans in August. It did not provide any updated financial data to the SEC after November 2013, so more recent revenue data is not available.
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