The Very Group has appointed Paul Hornby as its new digital customer experience director.

Due to join the business in January, he will report to chief technology officer Andy Burton.

Hornby had worked with The Very Group for 12 years, most recently as head of digital transformation, but left the business in 2018 to join Matalan as its e-commerce director.

A statement explained that Hornby will now lead a range of product-focused teams working to give customers a seamless digital experience across mobile and online.

Hornby said: “The Very Group is a special business for me, and it has exciting plans for the future with more people shopping online than ever before - by continuing to develop an outstanding online experience, we can help to attract and retain even more of these new customers.”

Burton added: “We’re delighted to welcome Paul back - he was responsible for some standout innovation first time around, and I’m confident he’ll lead the team to even bigger improvements to the customer experience this time.”

The group - which operates Very.co.uk and Littlewoods.com - has also appointed Steve Pimblett as chief data officer. He joins from connected cars startup Wejo, where he was both chief data officer and chief information officer.

Pimblett was also previously chief data officer at online gaming company Betsson Group, and general manager of data at price comparison website Moneysupermarket.com.

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