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Former Virgin Australia CEO Jayne Hrdlicka has been chosen to lead hotels operator Endeavour Group (ASX: EDV) following an international search for a successor to Steve Donohue who announced his shock resignation from the company in September last year.
Hrdlicka, whose career includes stints as CEO of Jetstar, Qantas Loyalty and The A2 Milk Company (ASX: A2M), will not step into the role until 1 January 2026.
However, Endeavour Group says she has agreed to make herself available to meet frequently with the company to “engage on key business and strategic matters as appropriate”.
Since Donohue’s exit as CEO in March, group chairman Ari Mervis has led the group as executive chairman – a role that Endeavour Group anticipated could last for up to a year until a search for the CEO’s replacement was completed.
Donohue, who spent 30 years with the Endeavour Group and led the company’s demerger from Woolworths (ASX: WOW), left the company in the wake of a weaker financial performance by the group which led to disquiet from its largest shareholder, pubs baron Bruce Mathieson who had railed against the company’s sagging profitability.
Endeavour Group notes that between 2010 and 2016, Hrdlicka was a non-executive director at Woolworths when the supermarket giant owned ALH Group – the business unit held in partnership with Mathieson before it was spun out in 2021 to establish Endeavour Group.
The company also points out that Hrdlicka “successfully led Virgin Australia out of administration” after stepping in as CEO in 2020.
Endeavour Group operates more than 350 pubs nationally as well as the Dan Murphy’s and BWS liquor outlets and several beverage businesses.
The company’s share price has been sitting around the $4 mark for most of this year, well off record highs above $8 achieved three years ago.
Endeavour Group posted a 15.1 per cent drop in net profit after tax to $298 million for the first half of FY25, as group sales slipped 0.7 per cent to $6.6 billion.
The company blamed the performance on subdued consumer spending in the first quarter as well as lost sales due to last year’s Victorian supply chain disruption.
Mervis says that Hrdlicka was chosen after an “extensive global search” for Donohue’s replacement, describing the seasoned CEO as a “highly capable leader”.
“Jayne has a proven track record leading consumer-facing businesses to success,” says Mervis.
“She has led many complex organisations and delivered significant shareholder value by capturing the true potential of a company’s brands and assets.
“Jayne brings many strengths to the role including a history of using deep consumer insights to define successful strategy formulation and execution and extensive business transformation experience.
“The board believes Jayne is the ideal candidate to lead Endeavour Group through its next phase of both growth and transformation.”
Hrdlicka has secured an employment contract with a base salary of $2 million, including superannuation, plus short-term and long-term incentives. This compares with a base salary of $1.61 million received by Donohue in FY24.
“Endeavour Group is an extraordinary company with an unmatched portfolio of brands and assets in its core categories,” says Hrdlicka.
“I have a long history with Endeavour’s retail and hotel businesses, initially as a consultant to Woolworths, including on their early liquor strategy, and then as a Woolworths Group board member.
“Endeavour Group has much to play for. I look forward to working with the 30,000-plus team members and, together, continuing to deliver for millions of valued customers as we look to grow the company and unlock value for all of our shareholders.”
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