Action man behind the wacky image The first most Asda employees knew of Allan Leighton's shock decision to quit the business was when they got a highly charged e-mail from their charismatic leader. In the e-mail, entitled My Fond Farewell', Leighton explained his reasons for leaving, saying it had been a "heart-wrenching decision". And he told staff: "Together over the past eight years we have taken our business from a basket case to one of the best companies in Britain and now part of one of the finest companies in the world." Leighton continued: "It's you, in your different roles in the stores, depots and every part of the business, who make Asda what it is. In my early days in the company, when the going was very tough, it was always colleagues who inspired me and kept me going. "When we started out Asda was a bad business. It's now a good business and, with Paul Mason and Dave Ferguson leading the team, it will become a great business." He signed off the message: "As always­ trade well! Love, Allan." Together with Archie Norman, Leighton saved Asda from going bust in the early 1990s. He joined the troubled group from Mars in 1992 as group marketing director. He became retail director in 1994. And from 1995 he was being groomed to succeed Norman as chief executive, taking up that post in 1996. Many pundits regard Leighton as the real force behind Asda's vibrant and wacky image ­ the action man to Norman's cerebral style. But having put Asda in a strong position, the duo felt it needed more scale ­ and quickly. They tried unsuccessfully to broker deals with Safeway and Kingfisher. Then last year, they lined up a second merger with Kingfisher, only to pull out at the 11th hour after agreeing the £6.7bn Wal-Mart deal. The departure of Leighton will be a massive setback for Wal-Mart as it struggles to turn its German operation around and grow in Europe. {{NEWS }}

Topics