Bérangère 'Bey' Michel, executive director for finance at the John Lewis Partnership has announced plans to leave the retailer later this autumn to pursue other career opportunities after 16 years.

Michel has held a range of senior leadership positions in retail supply chain and customer operations at the Partnership across both John Lewis and Waitrose, highlighted by her time as executive and board director for the John Lewis Partnership.

Prior to John Lewis, the executive spend 11 years at the Royal Mail where she held several roles including head of financial planning and analysis.

John Lewis said that it will now begin a process of recruitment to appoint Michel’s successor, with chief exec Nish Kankiwala praising Michel for her "remarkable contribution".

“Her passion for our unique model and commitment and dedication to securing our long-term success have been unwavering," said Kankiwala. "I know Bey will be missed by everyone in the Partnership.”

Sharon White, chairman of the Partnership, said: “Bey embodies everything that is special about the Partnership and has been a fervent champion for our ownership model, democracy and values. She will leave the Partnership in a much stronger financial position, overseeing a return to profit, record investment planned for this year and debt at historic lows. Bey has played an instrumental role on the Executive Team and Board and has our very best wishes as she seeks her next challenge.”

Earlier this month, John Lewis announced the appointment of Jason Tarry as chair following White’s decision to step down when her term ends next year. Tarry joins the company from Tesco, where he was chief executive of UK and Ireland for six years.

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