Andrew Swanston - General Management
Andrew has over 25 years management experience in retail environments, both large and small, and has particular expertise in book retailing. Among other positions, he was operations director of Waterstone & Co Ltd, and chief executive of Methven’s plc, and has provided strategic and operational advice to a number of other retailers.
Leading the rapid development of growing businesses calls for the ability to deal with every aspect of them, from strategic planning and site selection, to recruitment and training, buying and merchandising, and operational management; Andrew has direct experience of all of these.
In 2 years, he oversaw the doubling of Waterstone’s retail space, and later founded Methven’s and led its flotation on AIM. He has also worked on company sales, mergers, and acquisitions.
As comfortable on the shop floor as he is in the boardroom, Andrew thrives on seeing ambitious retail businesses benefit from his unusual range of skills and experience.