5 things you didn’t know about new Sainsbury’s boss Mike Coupe
Sainsbury's CEO Justin King is leaving the supermarket in July – but what do we know about his replacement and current commercial director, Mike Coupe?
1. A country boy at heart, Coupe was born in Watford in 1960 but was brought up in West Sussex. His mum was a housewife and his dad was an inventor and scientist who ran his own business selling medical equipment.
2. He has been married to Jill for 22 years and has two daughters (one is currently doing her year abroad in France). He spends his time between London and Yorkshire.
3. Coupe describes himself as a “keen but average guitarist” and also enjoys photography and cycling (he has biked from London to Paris twice for charity). He once told City A.M. that he likes the thrill from flying in private jets.
4. Over the past 20 years, Coupe has worked for Unilever, Tesco, Iceland and Asda in various trading, IT and commercial roles. He started Asda’s online business in 1999 during his time as trading director and also launched the grocer’s EDLP (every day low pricing) strategy.
5. Coupe is also a non-executive director for pub group Greene King, president of the industry charity Grocery Aid, and has also been acting as a mentor for Birmingham Business School since 2011. His ties with the city date back to when he graduated from Birmingham university in 1982 with a degree in Physics.