LIDL GB ANNOUNCES NEW CEO AS CHRISTIAN HÄRTNAGEL MOVES TO LIDL GERMANY TO TAKE HELM AS CEO

• Deputy CEO Ryan McDonnell promoted to CEO of Lidl GB 
• Härtnagel will start in his new role at Lidl Germany on 1st March 2022 and McDonnell will start in his new role on 1st February 2022

Friday 26th November: Lidl GB is today announcing that current CEO Christian Härtnagel will be moving to the role of CEO at Lidl Germany, the largest of the Lidl businesses, with current Deputy CEO Ryan McDonnell promoted to Lidl GB CEO. Härtnagel will start in his new role on 1st March 2022 and McDonnell on 1st February.

Härtnagel has been CEO of Lidl GB for more than five years, having been promoted from the role of Chief Operations Officer for Lidl Austria, where he was responsible for sales and operations.  He has been with Lidl for over 18 years, holding a variety of roles during his tenure including Regional Director at Lidl Ireland. Härtnagel replaces current Lidl Germany CEO and Member of Lidl’s International Board, Matthias Oppitz, who will take on a new international role on the Board.

McDonnell‘s career at Lidl extends over 21 years. The former Chief Commercial Officer of Lidl Ireland and Northern Ireland moved to Lidl GB in the role of Chief Commercial Officer in 2015. He was promoted to Deputy CEO in 2021.

Christian Härtnagel said: “It feels special, both personally and professionally, to be given the opportunity to go back to the country where I started my career many years ago, and to take the helm of the biggest market in the Lidl family. I’ve worked closely with Ryan for some time and have every faith in his ability to lead Lidl in Great Britain, and to build on the team’s fantastic track record in recent years. I feel very proud to leave the company in such capable and safe hands. Ryan and I are focused on delivering the best Christmas ever for our customers.”

Ryan McDonnell said: “Christian hands over a business built on strong foundations and I’m incredibly excited to have the baton passed on to me. I have worked at Lidl GB now for over six years, during which time we have seen our store estate, colleague and customer numbers grow exponentially. We couldn’t be in a better place as a business and I feel privileged to be taking us forward from here.”

ENDS

Notes to Editors: 

When Christian took on the role as Lidl GB CEO the discounter had a market share of 5%, 650 stores and 17,000 colleagues. At present, Lidl GB has 880 stores, over 26,000 colleagues and a market share of 6.2%.

About Lidl GB

Since establishing itself in Great Britain in 1994, Lidl GB has experienced continuous growth and today has over 26,000 employees, over 880 stores and 13 distribution centres in England, Scotland and Wales.

As part of the Schwarz retail group, Lidl is one of Europe’s leading organisations in the food retail industry. The supermarket, which has more than 341,000 employees globally, currently operates approximately 11,550 stores and more than 200 warehouses and distribution centres in 30 countries.

The supermarket takes pride in providing its customers with the highest quality products at the lowest possible prices throughout Great Britain, from Kirkwall to the Isle of Wight. Social responsibility and sustainability are at the core of the company's daily operations, with the company placing a strong emphasis on its responsibility for people, society, and the environment. Lidl GB is passionate about working with British producers and sources two thirds of its products from British suppliers.

The Schwarz Group, which operates worldwide as a retail group, generated a turnover of €125.3 billion in the financial year 2020.

For more information about Lidl GB visit https://corporate.lidl.co.uk/