Jill McDonald (businesswoman)

Gillian Clare McDonald (born 15 May 1964) is a British businesswoman. She has previously been the CEO of Costa Coffee, CEO of Halfords, CEO of McDonald's UK and head of Marks & Spencer's non-food business, overseeing clothing, home and beauty.

Jill McDonald
Born (1964-05-15) 15 May 1964
Birmingham, England
EducationSevenoaks School
University of Brighton
OccupationBusinesswoman
Known forFormer CEO of Halfords
Former CEO of McDonald's UK
Former CEO of Costa Coffee
Children2

Early life

McDonald was born in May 1964[1] in Birmingham, and grew up in Sevenoaks.[2] She was educated at Sevenoaks School and graduated from the University of Brighton with a first class degree in business studies.[3]

Career

She began her career as a graduate marketing trainee with Colgate Palmolive.[4] In 1990, she joined British Airways as a brand manager, and worked there for 16 years, rising to head of global marketing, before joining McDonald's in 2006.[5][6]

In 2006, she joined McDonald's as chief marketing officer for the UK and northern Europe, and in 2010, was promoted to CEO of McDonald's UK and president of North West Europe.[4][6]

She was appointed to the board of InterContinental Hotels Group in 2013.[7]

In May 2015, McDonald replaced Matt Davies (who left to join Tesco), as CEO of Halfords,[8] on a basic salary of £500,000 plus bonuses.[4]

In May 2017, McDonald was announced to be taking over Marks & Spencer's non-food business in the autumn, and in her role reported to CEO Steve Rowe.[9][10][11]

In July 2019, McDonald left Marks & Spencer after failing to secure an uplift in clothing sales, with Rowe assuming responsibility of the clothing and home division.[12][13]

In November 2019, McDonald was named CEO of Costa Coffee, and started on 2 December 2019.[14] On 13 July 2022, Costa Coffee announced that McDonald was stepping down as CEO of the company to join McDonald's in an international role.[15]

Personal life

McDonald is married with two sons.[2]

References
  1. "Halfords Group plc". Companies House. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  2. "Jill McDonald: North West Division President and Chief Executive Officer, McDonald's UK". McDonald's. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  3. ‘McDONALD, Gillian Clare’, Who's Who 2017, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2017
  4. "McDonald's UK CEO Jill McDonald swaps burgers for bikes and car parts". Fortune. 23 March 2015. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  5. "Executive Profile: Jill McDonald". Bloomberg. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  6. Barber, Lynsey (23 March 2015). "Halfords names Jill McDonald new chief executive to replace Matt Davies". CityAM. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  7. "Jill McDonald". InterContinental Hotels Group PLC. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  8. Farrell, Sean (23 March 2015). "Halfords hires McDonald's UK boss". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 March 2015.
  9. "Marks and Spencer hires Halfords boss Jill McDonald". BBC News. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  10. Armstrong, Ashley. "M&S poaches Halfords boss Jill McDonald to run struggling clothing business". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  11. Butler, Sarah (3 May 2017). "M&S hires Halfords chief to run struggling clothing arm". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 May 2017.
  12. "Marks & Spencer ousts fashion boss". BBC News. 11 July 2019. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  13. "M&S sacks fashion boss McDonald with CEO to lead turnaround". Sky News. Retrieved 11 July 2019.
  14. Upshall, Emma (22 November 2019). "Costa Coffee appoints Jill McDonald as new CEO". FoodBev Media. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  15. "Jill McDonald to step down as Costa Coffee CEO". Costa Newsroom. Retrieved 13 July 2022.
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