Véronique Laury (born 29 June 1965) is a French businesswoman who was chief executive officer (CEO) of
Kingfisher
Kingfishers are a family, the Alcedinidae, of small to medium-sized, brightly coloured birds in the order Coraciiformes. They have a cosmopolitan distribution, with most species living in the tropical regions of Africa, Asia, and Oceania, ...
, a UK based retail group, from February 2015 to September 2019.
In March 2019, it was announced that Laury would leave Kingfisher at a date to be announced following the failure of her "One Kingfisher" recovery plan and a 52.8% drop in pre-tax profits.
Early life
Véronique Laury was born on 29 June 1965.
She attended the
Sciences Po
Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...
, the Paris Institute of Political Studies, or ''Institut d'études politiques de Paris'' (IEP).
Career
She spent fifteen years at
Leroy Merlin
Leroy Merlin () is a French-headquartered home improvement and gardening retailer serving several countries in Europe, Asia, South America, and Africa. Leroy Merlin is owned by the Mulliez family, which also owns Auchan.
History
In 1923, ...
in France.
Kingfisher
In September 2014, it was announced that Laury would replace
Ian Cheshire as CEO of
Kingfisher plc
Kingfisher plc is a British Multinational corporation, multinational retailing company headquartered in London, England.
It has over 1,300 stores in nine countries, and its brands include B&Q, Castorama, Brico Dépôt and Screwfix. Kingfisher i ...
, a
FTSE 100
The Financial Times Stock Exchange 100 Index, also called the FTSE 100 Index, FTSE 100, FTSE, or, informally, the "Footsie" , is the United Kingdom's best-known stock market index of the 100 most market capitalisation, highly capitalised ...
British multinational retail company from February 2015. Laury has worked at
Castorama, a subsidiary of Kingfisher, for eleven years, including roles at
B&Q.
Personal life
She is also known as Veronique Laury-Deroubaix. She has a daughter and two sons, and lives in
Lille
Lille (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city in the northern part of France, within French Flanders. Positioned along the Deûle river, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, the Prefectures in F ...
. She enjoys
horse riding
Equestrianism (from Latin , , , 'horseman', 'horse'), commonly known as horse riding ( Commonwealth English) or horseback riding (American English), includes the disciplines of riding, driving, and vaulting. This broad description includes the ...
, and is a former
show jumper.
References
External links
Kingfisher
1965 births
French chief executives
French show jumping riders
20th-century French businesswomen
20th-century French businesspeople
Kingfisher plc
People from Lille
Place of birth missing (living people)
Sciences Po alumni
Living people
French female equestrians
Sportspeople from Nord (French department)
21st-century British businesswomen
20th-century French sportswomen
{{UK-business-bio-1960s-stub