NWS Smiths News

TIDMCNCT

RNS Number : 4786D

Connect Group PLC

27 October 2015

Connect Group PLC

("Connect Group" or "the Company")

Board Changes

Connect Group, a leading specialist distributor operating in four divisions; News & Media, Books, Education & Care and Parcel Freight, is pleased to announce that Colin Child will join the Board as a non-executive director and member of the Audit, Remuneration and Nominations Committees, with effect from 1 December 2015. Colin will subsequently succeed John Worby as Chairman of the Audit Committee at the conclusion of the Annual General Meeting on 4 February 2016 when John Worby will step down and retire from the Board.

Colin Child is a chartered accountant and has extensive financial experience having previously been Chief Financial Officer at De La Rue plc from June 2010 until July 2015 and prior to that Group Finance Director at each of DTZ Holdings plc, Stanley Leisure plc, Fitness First Plc and National Express Group PLC. He is also currently a non-executive director and Chairman of fastjet plc.

Gary Kennedy, Chairman of Connect Group, commented:

"I am delighted to welcome Colin to the Connect Group Board. He brings a wealth of commercial and financial expertise from a broad range of companies, from which the Group will be able to derive great benefit."

"I would also like to thank John Worby for his significant contribution to the Board. His business experience and judgement have greatly assisted in the success of the Group during his time on the Board and as Chairman of the Audit Committee."

Colin Child said:

"I am excited by the growth opportunities available to Connect Group. I look forward to joining the team and being able to contribute to the next stage of the Group's development."

The Company confirms that there is no further information about Colin Child requiring disclosure under paragraph 9.6.13 (2) to (6) of the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority.

Enquiries:

 
 Connect Group PLC 
 Mark Cashmore, Group Chief Executive    Tel: 01793 563641 
 
 Buchanan 
 Sophie McNulty                         Tel: 020 7466 5000 
  Richard Oldworth 
  Gabriella Clinkard 
 

About Connect Group PLC:

Connect Group PLC is a leading specialist distributor operating in large and diverse markets. The Group has four separate divisions, connecting suppliers to customers in an efficient, knowledgeable and service oriented way:

-- Connect News & Media - Encompassing: Smiths News and Dawson Media Direct. Smiths News is the UK's largest newspaper and magazine wholesaling business with an approximate 55 per cent. market share. It distributes newspapers and magazines on behalf of the majority of the major national publishers as well as a large number of regional publishers. It serves approximately 30,000 customers across England and Wales, including large general retailers as well as smaller independent newsagents delivering approximately 35 million newspapers and 11 million magazines weekly. The News business also includes Pass My Parcel, a new Click & Collect delivery service for outbound and returns parcels with Amazon as its first client; Dawson Media Direct is an international media direct business supplying newspapers, magazines, inflight entertainment technology and content to over 80 airlines in 50 countries.

-- Connect Books - Combining a number of recognised brands in print and digital bookselling across four customer focused business units: Wholesale, including Bertrams Books; Libraries, including Dawson Books; Direct to Consumer, including Wordery and International, including Houtschild. The division serves over 8,200 customers in approximately 100 countries, with over 156,000 in stock titles and access to over a further seven million consumer and twenty million academic titles.

-- Connect Education & Care - A leading independent supplier of consumable products through The Consortium and West Mercia Supplies. The division holds an approximate 5 per cent. market share of the estimated addressable market, comprising the consumables element of education spend. It serves over 30,000 customers with an extensive range of over 40,000 products across a branded, own-brand and value range, including exercise books, stationery, arts and craft and cleaning products through a paper based catalogue and increasing focus on e-commerce trading with schools.

-- Connect Parcel Freight - Tuffnells is a leading provider of next-day B2B delivery of mixed freight/ parcel consignments, specialising in items of irregular dimension and weight, examples of which include bulky furnishings, building materials and automotive parts. Tuffnells offers distribution coverage throughout the UK through a network of 37 depots and operates a largely depot-to-depot operational model, providing over 10 million deliveries per annum, through a wide range of services to over 4,200 largely 'SME' customers.

This information is provided by RNS

The company news service from the London Stock Exchange

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October 27, 2015 03:00 ET (07:00 GMT)

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