British Land CFO to step down

Bhavesh Mistry, chief financial officer at British Land, is to leave the business after three years and join B&Q owner Kingfisher. Mistry, who has a 12-month notice period, will stay with the REIT until a replacement is found. A search for a new CFO has already begun. British Land chief executive Simon Carter said: “I would like to thank Bhavesh for his significant contribution in the past three years, over which time we have allocated capital well, controlled costs and positioned the balance sheet to seize the opportunities that are now emerging.” At Kingfisher, Mistry will succeed Bernard Bot, who is retiring to pursue a non-executive career. His departure date has not yet been set, but will be no later than January 2025, said Kingfisher. Thierry Garnier, chief executive at Kingfisher, said: “Bhavesh has a wealth of finance and retail experience, combined with a strategic mindset and an excellent track record of delivery. He is also a people-focused leader who will be a strong fit for our culture. We are fortunate to attract somebody of the calibre of Bhavesh, who will be a strong addition to our board and our group executive team”. Mistry joined BL in 2021 from Tesco where he was deputy finance boss for more than two years. Prior to the role at Tesco, Mistry spent more than five years at Whitbread, where he oversaw the finances of the Premier Inn owner’s core hotels and restaurants operation. He has also held senior finance and strategy roles at Virgin Media and Anheuser-Busch InBev.