B&M interim CFO and executive director Helen Cowing has left the UK discount retailer with immediate effect, less than five months after starting in December 2025.
Cowing took on the temporary finance post after the departure of former CFO Mike Schmidt.
The business has named its current group financial controller, Peter Waterhouse, as interim CFO. It added that he will assume the post immediately and will stay in place until a permanent appointment is made.
Waterhouse joined B&M in 2013 and became group financial controller in 2020.
He has held senior finance positions at Johnson Service Group and Logica.
In a separate board update, B&M appointed Peter Pritchard as a non-executive director, effective immediately.
Pritchard was group CEO at Pets at Home from 2018 to 2022 and has previously worked at Asda and Wilko.
He is currently a senior independent director and chair of the remuneration committee at AO World.
Pritchard commented: “I am excited to be joining the board of B&M at an important point in its development. B&M is a highly differentiated business with a strong value-led proposition, disciplined operating model and a clear opportunity to drive further growth.”
B&M also said Jennifer Lawrence will join as group people director on 5 May 2026, leading a newly created group human relations (HR) function covering B&M UK, B&M France and Heron.
Lawrence has more than 25 years of HR experience, including roles at Boots Opticians and Costcutter, and most recently served as executive people and transformation director at Card Factory.
The retailer added that its FY26 preliminary results for the 52 weeks to 28 March 2026 are due on 3 June 2026.
B&M CEO Tjeerd Jegen said: “It is fantastic to have Jennifer join B&M in this new expanded role. Alongside our customers, our people are vital stakeholders in our business. Jennifer's appointment will help us serve them better while deepening the diversity of talent we are building across our leadership.
“I am equally pleased we can draw on Peter's considerable experience and expertise as our interim CFO. I look forward to working closely with him in his new role. I would like to thank Helen for leading our finance team on an interim basis in recent months. We wish her well for the future.”
