Mohsin Issa, co-owner of Asda, is stepping back from day-to-day operations to concentrate on his role as CEO at EG Group, a company that operates petrol stations and convenience stores across Europe, the US, and Australia. In his stead, Lord Rose of Monewden will assume his responsibilities temporarily, collaborating with Rob Hattrell from TDR Capital, the majority stakeholder in Asda.
Mohsin Issa will remain on Asda’s board as a non-executive director while holding a 22.5% stake in the company. This decision aligns with calls from Lord Rose, who has publicly expressed disappointment over Asda’s declining market share, urging Issa to focus on EG Group. Issa’s brother, Zuber, has sold his 22.5% stake in Asda to TDR Capital earlier this year to pursue other business ventures.
Asda is currently grappling with a challenging period, as evidenced by a 6% fall in sales over the past twelve weeks, resulting in a reduced market share of 12.6% compared to 13.7% a year ago. In contrast, competitors such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s, and Morrisons have made gains, adding pressure on Asda’s leadership. Lord Rose has acknowledged the contributions of Mohsin Issa, particularly in launching Asda’s convenience store initiative and a loyalty app now utilised by over six million customers.
Mohsin Issa is set to become the sole CEO of EG Group when his brother steps down next month, following the completion of a deal to sell EG’s remaining UK forecourts.
With the temporary leadership change, Asda aims to navigate through its current challenges and position itself more strongly in the competitive retail market.