Kate Swann to step down as SSP chief executive

SSP chief executive Kate Swann will step down next year, the travel food retailer said on Wednesday, as it reported a jump in full-year profits driven by contract wins and an expanding global presence.

The veteran FTSE 250 executive, who spent a decade at the helm of stationary and books chain WH Smith, will leave at the end of May to be succeeded by the company’s UK and Ireland CEO, Simon Smith.

Ms Swann, 53, joined the relatively unknown SSP in 2013 enticed by a generous annual bonus deal on top of a £750,000 salary, and received £1.35m in cash for guiding the company through a successful initial public offering in 2015.

During her tenure at SSP, which operates outlets including Upper Crust and Ritazza across 140 airports and 280 train stations, the group expanded to win more contracts and delivered margin improvements, said Greg Johnson, analyst at Shore Capital.

The company’s market capitalisation has grown from £1bn when it listed to £3.35bn. In the year to September 30 it reported an 8 per cent increase in revenue to £2.6bn, like-for-like sales up 3 per cent and a 26 per cent jump in profit before tax.

Ms Swann pointed to an increase in travellers eating on the go and the company’s expanding global footprint — including in the US — as drivers of year-on-year growth, but said it was time to leave the business to someone “smarter and younger”.

The news of her exit stoked investor nerves and shares in SSP fell 7 per cent.

However, Mr Johnson said the appointment of Mr Smith provides continuity and “a culture of constantly driving up efficiency gains is now embedded in the business”.

Mr Smith’s appointment echoes Ms Swann’s last succession plan: she was replaced as chief of WH Smith by Stephen Clarke, whom she had hired from Argos, where she had previously been managing director. In 2014, shortly after joining SSP, she recruited her now-successor from WH Smith.

Before she goes Ms Swann said she had some big projects to oversee, including SSP’s entry into South America with two contracts in Brazil worth a total of £70m over nine years.

Looking further afield, she said she had no plans: “I am going to be completely focused on SSP until May.”

Ms Swann’s total remuneration between 2014 and 2017 was £16.2m*, and she leaves with a total shareholding of about £35m. Asked if her high pay was justified, she said: “I created a couple of billion for shareholders and I don’t think I’ve received quite a couple of billion.”

SSP said the 2019 financial year had started in line with expectations and it expected full-year like-for-like sales growth in the range of 2-3 per cent.

Chairman Vagn Sorenson said: “In the past five years, Kate has transformed SSP into an industry-leading food travel retail business, which has grown significantly around the world, and she has generated significant returns for our shareholders.”

This article has been amended to correct the period during which Ms Swann earned £16.2m