Former head of Coles Express announced as incoming Chief Executive of Coles Liquor

Yesterday afternoon newly appointed Coles Group CEO Leah Weckert announced former Coles Express chief Michael Courtney as the new Chief Executive of Coles Liquor.

From July 1 Courtney will replace outgoing chief Darren Blackhurst, who announced he’d be stepping down from the role to return to the UK to spend time with his children and ageing parents last month.

Weckert said she’s delighted with Courtney’s promotion and welcomes him to the Executive Leadership Team at Coles along with Amanda McVay, the newly recruited Chief Customer Officer.

Leading the Coles Express business for four years until it was acquired by Viva Energy earlier this year, Weckert said Courtney “is a fantastic example of building a great career at Coles and this appointment is testament to his ability to seek opportunities to continually adapt and grow.

“Michael has spent the past six months immersing himself in the eCommerce business and transforming our customer offer. Michael is exceptionally well placed to lead Liquor in delivering the strategy and transformation plans underway. He is committed to building a strong culture and team who are passionate about being local drinks specialists,” she said.

Courtney said he’s excited to take on this new role at Coles Liquor as providing an exceptional drinks experience is key to the Coles Group’s strategy moving forward.

“We’ve got three really strong brands in the liquor business being Liquorland, First Choice Liquor Market and Vintage Cellars which cater to a variety of customer missions and give us the opportunity to really differentiate in the market.

“Darren Blackhurst, in his three years in the business, set forward a strategy that’s gained really positive momentum which I’m looking forward to building on and working with the team and our suppliers to be the very best drinks retailer in Australia,” he said.

Coles’ third quarter sales results released this month revealed a 2.6 per cent rise in liquor sales revenue, rising to $801 million this quarter.

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