Pets at Home appoints James Bailey as chief executive

Pets at Home Group has appointed former Waitrose managing director James Bailey as its next chief executive, with effect from 30 March 2026.

Bailey will join the UK pet care retailer after more than five years at Waitrose, where he was managing director from April 2020.

During that period, he led the supermarket through the Covid pandemic and a subsequent period of high inflation, and oversaw the relaunch of Waitrose.com following the grocer’s move away from the Ocado platform.

Before joining Waitrose, Bailey spent two decades at Sainsbury’s, holding a number of senior roles including grocery buying director.

Ian Burke was appointed executive chair on 18 September 2025 on an interim basis while the group searched for a permanent chief executive. He will revert to the role of non-executive chair once Bailey takes up the post and will support him during the transition.

Ian Burke, chair of Pets at Home, said: “On behalf of the board, I am delighted to announce the appointment of James Bailey as CEO of Pets at Home Group Plc. Following an extensive search process, the board believes James’ experience aligns well with the groups’s ambitions for the coming years.

“His strong retail leadership skills will support the ongoing focus on improving Pets at Home’s retail business, with significant operational and commercial experience leading both stores and online operations. My Board colleagues and I very much look forward to working with him.”

Bailey added: “I’m delighted to be joining Pets at Home, it’s a business I’ve admired for a long time and one I believe has a very bright future. I look forward to working with the Board and to meeting and working with all of the Pets colleagues and partners.”