Derek Rayner, Baron Rayner

Derek George Rayner, Baron Rayner (born March 30, 1926 in Norwich ( Norfolk ), † June 26, 1998 in Surrey ) was an English businessman. He held senior positions at Marks & Spencer (now commonly known as M&S), one of the major UK retailers that revitalized and expanded the company in the 1980s. In 1953 he started his work in the company chain as a trainee and in 1984 became the first CEO who did not come from the founding families of the company.

Life

Derek Rayner began his career at M&S ​​in 1953 as a trainee in the company's Oxford branch when Lord Marcus Sieff, then board member, asked him for advice on a problem. He rose rapidly in the management hierarchy of M&S and became a director in 1967.

Due to his extensive management experience at M&S, Rayner initially worked in various positions for the British government during the tenure of Prime Minister Edward Heath (1970–1974). In 1971 he succeeded in getting the British naval, land and air forces to have their equipment procured from a single procurement office, the MoD Procurement Executive . Later he also advised Margaret Thatcher on measures that should lead to increased efficiency in the government apparatus; so advocated that the officials hold fewer meetings.

In 1982 Rayner returned to M&S and was promoted to chairman of the board two years later, making him the first person outside the founding Marks and Sieff families to hold the post. Back in the early 1980s that turned the company trademark "St. Michael “as out of date and sales of clothing and housewares declined. Rayner brought the company back on track, among other things, by bringing about cost reductions and motivating employees more. He also carried out strict financial controls, modernization of the branches and further expansion. Under his supervision, the retail chain bought the US clothing company Brooks Brothers for $ 770 million in 1988 , issued its own customer credit card and expanded the UK branch network.

In 1973, Rayner was knighted in recognition of his government work. Ten years later, on February 3, 1983, he was promoted to Life Peer Baron Rayner, of Crowborough in the County of East Sussex . He died on June 26, 1998 at the age of 72.

Remarks

1. ^ ^{A b c d e} New York Times obituary, July 12, 1998
2. ↑ London Gazette . No. 45933, HMSO, London, March 20, 1973, p. 3645 ( PDF , English).
3. ↑ London Gazette . No. 49260, HMSO, London, February 8, 1983, p. 1869 ( PDF , English).