Pets at Home Group has announced the appointment of James Bailey as Chief Executive Officer, with effect from 30 March 2026.

He was most recently managing director of Waitrose, a position he held for over five years from April 2020.

“During his tenure, he led Waitrose to strong sales and profit growth, steering the business through the challenging Covid period and its immediate aftermath of high inflation. He also relaunched Waitrose.com after the company moved off the Ocado platform,” said a statement from Pets at Home Group.

Prior to his appointment at Waitrose, Bailey held a number of senior roles over 20 years at J Sainsbury plc, including grocery buying director.

“I’m delighted to be joining Pets at Home, it’s a business I’ve admired for a long time and one I believe has a very bright future,” he said.

“I look forward to working with the Board and to meeting and working with all of the Pets colleagues and partners.”

Ian Burke, chair of Pets at Home, said: “On behalf of the Board, I am delighted to announce the appointment of James Bailey as CEO of Pets at Home Group Plc.

“Following an extensive search process, the Board believes James’ experience aligns well with the Group’s ambitions for the coming years.

“His strong retail leadership skills will support the ongoing focus on improving Pets at Home’s retail business, with significant operational and commercial experience leading both stores and online operations.”

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