UK's Asda says retail veteran Stuart Rose to lead business
Co-owner Mohsin Issa steps back from leadership role
Search for permanent CEO continues
Asda has been losing market share
Adds latest market share data paragraph 3, detail 10 to 12
By James Davey
LONDON, Sept 18 (Reuters) -British supermarket group Asda, which has been losing market share, said its chairman, veteran retailer Stuart Rose, will assume the executive responsibilities of co-owner Mohsin Issa, who is stepping back from his leadership role.
The UK's third largest grocer has underperformed rivals, including market leader Tesco TSCO.L and No. 2 Sainsbury's SBRY.L, over the last year, with monthly data consistently showing it to be the industry laggard.
Data published on Wednesday from market researcher NIQ, showed Asda's sales fell 5.5% over the 12 weeks to Sept. 7 year-on-year, and it lost 1.3 percentage points of market share over the year.
Last month, Rose, 75, who is a former CEO of Marks & Spencer and a former chairman of Ocado, told the Telegraph newspaper he was embarrassed by Asda's performance.
Asda has been without a chief executive since Roger Burnley left abruptly in 2021.
While the search for a permanent CEO continues, it said Rose would work alongside Rob Hattrell, a partner at private equity firm TDR Capital, who was already a director on the supermarket group's board.
Asda is owned by Issa and TDR Capital, while U.S. giant Walmart WMT.N, its previous owner, retains 10%.
"I have decided now is the right time for me to step back from my oversight role at Asda," said Issa.
He will remain a non-executive director but focus on his role as sole CEO of petrol forecourt operator EG Group.
Rose praised Issa for launching into the growth market of convenience stores, introducing a loyalty app now used by more than six million customers, and laying the foundations to deliver "a world-class IT infrastructure".
Analysts say Asda has been weighed down by the cost of servicing the debt it took on when Mohsin and Zuber Issa and TDR Capital bought 90% of Asda from Walmart in a 6.8 billion pound ($9 billion) deal that completed in 2021.
In June, TDR agreed a deal to gain majority ownership by acquiring Zuber Issa's share.
($1 = 0.7571 pounds)
Reporting by James Davey; editing by Sarah Young, Paul Sandle and Barbara Lewis
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