Continuing to Focus on Customers

International support services and construction group Interserve has appointed Ian Mcilroy as its new retail sector director.

Ian brings with him over 30 years' experience in the retail industry, including 20 years spent specialising in store and regional operations for some of the UK's largest brands such as Tesco and Matalan.

Heading up Interserve's retail operations, Ian will be responsible for overseeing the daily delivery of integrated facilities services to over 5,000 high street stores, supermarkets and retail outlets across the UK and Ireland, including specialist cleaning, security and M&E support.

Ian's appointment comes as part of Interserve's ongoing work to help retailers create engaging environments for shoppers. Using his sector experience and expertise, Ian will drive the company's innovation programme looking at how new technologies and working practices can be used to measure and improve the in-store customer experience.

Jeff Flanagan, managing director - commercial at Interserve, said that Ian's experience in the sector would be a valuable addition to the business:

"Ian is a great addition to the team. Having worked in the sector himself, he has an insightful knowledge of the challenges that retailers face.

"With the shift to online, the bricks and mortar experience needs to be better than ever before, to help protect the market share for physical retail destinations. We want to ensure that shoppers have a seamless customer journey from the first moment they enter a centre, up to the point of sale and beyond. With Ian onboard, I'm confident that we can continue to provide an excellent service for our customers that keeps their shoppers coming back time and time again."

Ian Mcilroy, retail sector director at Interserve, said that he was looking forward to driving the business' focus on improving the shopper experience:

"Interserve understands the importance of the retail environment from brand perception to shopper behaviour and I'm looking forward to helping grow and develop the retail division further.

"The business has already invested heavily in new ways of working and innovations to make the retail experience the best it can be. I'll be working with the team to continue leading these efforts and help centre owners and retailers stay one step ahead."