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TheMoodieReport.com: David King leaves Alpha Airports Group – 17/10/06
Source: ©The Moodie Report
By Martin Moodie
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David King will be stepping down from the Board as Group Commercial Director with immediate effect
UK. Alpha Airports Group Commercial Director David King has left the company, following a strategic review of the company’s operations led by new CEO and Chairman Peter Williams.

Alpha said today that as a result of restructuring King will be stepping down from the Board with immediate effect.


Chairman and CEO Peter Williams: “This restructuring will bring far greater focus and clarity to our two operational divisions and is a further step in building a solid platform for our future growth."
Chairman and CEO Peter Williams commented: “This restructuring will bring far greater focus and clarity to our two operational divisions and is a further step in building a solid platform for our future growth.

“We are very grateful to David, who has brought a wealth of experience over the six years that he has been working for Alpha. He is a well-known and respected figure in the industry and I would like to thank him on behalf of everyone at Alpha for his tremendous contribution. I wish him every success in the future.”

Alpha said that as part of its “ongoing review of the Group’s strategy” it has concluded that its operations will be reorganised to “better align the business with the needs of its customer”.

The previously separate central commercial team is to be integrated into, and report directly to, the Group’s two operating divisions. This will ensure that Alpha Retail Services and Alpha Airline Services will have their own commercial functions including buying, food development, merchandise management and marketing services.

COMMENT: The departure of David King, an ebullient, driven and respected figure, comes as no real surprise given the arrival of a new CEO in the wake of the series of crises that hit Alpha this year. They began with the refusal of its auditors to sign off the company's accounts over concerns relating to the awarding of an airline contract; the subsequent suspension of trading from the London Stock Exchange; and the departures of former CEO Kevin Abbott and Finance Director Heather Mcrae.

In such circumstances a new CEO was always likely to make sweeping changes. David King is today the victim of that desire, and he is a realistic enough individual to understand it. He has done a fine job at Alpha in recent years, and played a pivotal role in the company gaining a ten-year extension to its retail contract with Manchester Airport, announced last month. The contract is expected to realise turnover in excess of £800 million over the period of Alpha's tenure.

He was an affable people's man, always accessible to the press and always passionate about the business. It is certain that he will want to remain in the travel retail channel, though he could not make any comment today. He can be reached at dwkingctc@btinternet.com

The Moodie Report wishes him well for the future.