Franchise Brands plc is pleased to announce that Peter Molloy, CEO of the Water & Waste Services division, has been appointed as Group CEO, a new role, and a Director on the Franchise Brand plc Board.
The Group has grown rapidly over the past two years with the acquisitions of Filta and Pirtek and now has annualised system sales of approximately £400m, with seven franchise brands across 10 countries in the UK, Europe and North America. The Board has been considering the optimum leadership structure and the development of corporate governance for a Group of this size as it continues to realise the Group’s growth potential.
In his new role, Peter Molloy will be responsible for the day-to-day leadership of the Group across its four principal divisions and shared central functions, and will drive the implementation of the strategy, business performance and accelerate integration. Stephen Hemsley will remain Executive Chairman and focus on the strategic and corporate development of the Company, including Group finance and future acquisitions.
Stephen Hemsley, Executive Chairman, said: “The Group has reached a scale where the timing is right for the appointment of a Group CEO at Board level, to separate my responsibilities and provide greater focus on the strategic and commercial development of the business to support our ambitious growth plans.
“Peter Molloy has been a key part of the Franchise Brands team since 2017 and has made an exceptional contribution in leading the substantial growth of Metro Rod and in the successful formation and integration of the Water & Waste Services division.
“Peter has strong commercial acumen, and the Board is confident that he will successfully drive the implementation of our strategic priorities, which includes an increased focus on digitally-enabled integration, enabling the Group to realise its significant growth potential.
“Peter is a natural leader whose values are closely aligned with the Franchise Brands culture. It is a testament to the quality of the senior leadership team that our first Group CEO comes from within the business.
“I am very much looking forward to working with Peter in his new role on the next stage of Franchise Brands’ development.”
Peter Molloy, Group CEO, said: “I am honoured to be chosen as the first Group CEO. Since joining Metro Rod over 20 years ago and having worked closely with Stephen and the Franchise Brands team since 2017, I am so proud of what we have achieved together.
“We have created a strong business, yet there remains so much untapped potential. Our principal franchise brands have significant growth potential through increasing their small shares of large, fragmented markets, expanding their range of services and geographical penetration, and cross-selling to our large customer base.
“I am truly passionate about the business, our people and ensuring we provide our customers with a first-class experience, as we help franchisees to grow their business, such that “as they grow, we grow”. I am excited to lead the further development of the business and to realise the strategic ambitions set out at the Capital Markets Day earlier this year. This will be achieved in part by accelerating the pace of integration of the Group’s businesses into “One Franchise Brands” and by supporting the entrepreneurial spirit of our franchisees, who are the backbone of our business together with our dedicated Support Centre teams.”
