In the newly created role, Smith joined the company in June following the departure of Finance Director Craig Tedford. He joined the business from Costa Coffee, where he was Interim Finance Director, Costa Express.
Smith has a long and distinguished career spanning back to Unilever, where he joined their graduate scheme in 1990. He subsequently worked in their UK and overseas operations.
Twelve years with Coca-Cola followed, with much of that time spent in Asia as Financial Director (FD) and more latterly as FD for Coca-Cola GB and Ireland. In 2011 Smith moved to Rentokil Initial & in 2015, Serco where he held the position of Division FD.
Latterly Smith was FD for Costa Express and was involved in the sale of the company from Whitbread to Coca-Cola.
Guy Smith said: “CJ Lang is investing for the long term whilst executing a customer-focused strategy to build independent convenience retailing, encourage local shopping and build brand loyalty. It’s not every day that you get the opportunity to work for one of the most prominent family-owned Scottish businesses. I am excited to further solidify CJ Lang as the leader in the Scottish convenience market.”
Colin McLean, CEO of CJ Lang, added: “Guy is a very experienced CFO with an extensive financial understanding across a diverse range of companies, both nationally and internationally. He brings more than 30 years of financial leadership. We welcome Guy to the business and look forward to working closely with him as we move to the next stage of our transformation programme.”
Source: SPAR UK
The UK became a SPAR member in 1956 when SPAR International granted the SPAR licence to a group of independent wholesalers. As a result, there are now five regional partners in the UK. A central office in London provides national marketing and buying services for the group.
SPAR has led the highly competitive convenience market in the UK for many years. Always innovative, the five regional partners continue to grow the brand. SPAR UK comprises independently owned licensed retailers and company-owned stores. These include forecourts, airports, train stations, city centres, and local neighbourhood stores.
