Bake-off: Ex-WH Smith finance chief withdraws from Greggs role after audit blunder
The former finance chief of WH Smith will no longer take up a position on the board of Greggs after a damning audit report into the travel retailer revealed inconsistent accounting practices during his stint as finance boss.
In a statement to investors on Wednesday, the high-street bakery confirmed that Robert Moorhead, who stepped down from WH Smith in 2024 after over two decades at the chain, had “withdrawn his candidacy for the position of non-executive director”.
Greggs announced in July the appointment of Moorhead as a board member and audit committee chair, before delaying his appointment until a review into a major accounting error at WH Smith was completed.
The stationer, which earlier this year sold its high-street business to private equity firm Modella Capital, instructed Deloitte to conduct a major review into its US auditing after it identified an accounting misstatement in August that had overstated its profits by millions of pounds. The announcement wiped 42 per cent off the FTSE 250 firm’s shares overnight, plunging the future of lonsgstanding chief executive Carl Cowling into doubt.
On Wednesday, WH Smith announced Cowling would step down from his position after six years, after Deloitte delivered a damning verdict of WH Smith’s accounting practices. The Big Four accountant found the retailer had “insufficient systems, controls and review procedures” in place before the controversy, and judged there to be “weakness in the composition of the finance team”.
“Whilst the issues identified in the Deloitte review arose in our North American division, I recognise the seriousness of this situation and as group CEO feel it is only right that I step down from my position,” the chief executive said in a statement.
US arm large focus for WH Smith amid transport pivot
Greggs confirmed that Kate Ferry, Burberry’s chief financial officer, would continue in the role in the wake of Moorhead’s withdrawal. Ferry had announced her intention to step back from her position on the FTSE-250 bakery’s board in August, but was kept in position after her replacement’s appointment was held up by the accounting blunder.
Before commissioning the review, WH Smith discovered after Moorhead’s departure that the firm had overstated its profit in North America by £30m.
The company had held up its expansion into the US a core part of its transition to specialise in travel retail, after the headline-grabbing sale of its high-street business to Modella earlier this year. The £76m deal, which has seen its stores rebranded as TG Jones, brought an end to the brand’s 233-year presence on UK high streets, as it sought to focus on the more lucrative locations in airports and train stations.
WH Smith replaced Moorhead with Max Izzard, a former Burberry executive, last year. Its shares closed over seven per cent higher after it announced Cowling’s resignation on Wednesday morning.