Richard Baker (UK businessman)
| Richard Baker | |
|---|---|
| Born | 6 August 1962 |
| Residence | Stamford, Lincolnshire, United Kingdom |
| Nationality | British |
| Occupation | chairman of European Division of Groupe Aeroplan |
Richard Baker (born 6 August 1962) is the former chief operating officer of Asda Stores Ltd. and CEO of Boots Group. He is currently chairman of the European Division of Groupe Aeroplan, which owns and runs the Nectar Loyalty Programme in the UK. He also serves as non-executive chairman of Virgin Active, non-executive director of Whitbread plc, operating partner at Advent International and chairman of DFS.
After graduating from Downing College, Cambridge, Baker worked at Mars Confectionery for nearly 10 years, working his way up to sales and marketing director. He joined Asda Stores Ltd in 1995, where he worked for the following 9 years becoming Marketing Director in 1999, and ultimately chief operating officer in 2002, following their acquisition by Walmart.
In September 2003, Baker joined Boots Group as chief executive officer. The company had been reporting losses following its ill-advised move into its 'Wellbeing' services, which included Dentistry, Massage and Botox. Despite implementing a number of cost-cutting measures and extending opening hours, the company continued to struggle until October 2005 it announced it was to merge with competitor Alliance Unichem. The announcement met with widespread opposition, but the merger was cleared by the OFT in February 2006 and completed in July that year. Baker became chief executive officer of the new Alliance Boots GmbH.
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