Oakman restructures board and raises £5.3m

A board restructure at the business that runs 40 rural and suburban pubs and hotels across England has seen the departure of financial director Koula Achillea, who is pursuing new career opportunities, and Borg-Neal return as chief executive with the leadership team reporting directly to him.

Other boardroom moves are long-time non-executive director and shareholder John Leslie has become non-executive chairman, Dermot King will take charge of the finance team on an interim basis and will take on the critical responsibility of focusing on Oakman’s strategic direction and current head of HR, Jill Scatchard, joins the board as HR director.

Enormous contribution

Borg-Neal said: “I want to thank Koula for her support and enormous contribution during her time with us, and we wish her well in her future ventures.

“This is a critical time for the hospitality industry with a range of unique challenges never experienced simultaneously across so many areas.

“We must be agile and respond quickly to the extraneous pressures of supply, employment, energy, costs, taxation, environment and politics. I am confident we have a team capable of meeting this myriad of challenges.”

First-class employer

On Scatchard’s appointment, Borg-Neal: “Jill has been instrumental in making Oakman a first-class employer. Attracting, retaining and developing great people is more important than ever and it is entirely appropriate that Jill has a seat on the board.”

On the business’s recent equity raise, Borg-Neal said: “I am delighted to announce that we have raised the maximum £5.3m from our existing shareholders. I am both flattered and delighted by the support we have received. This funding leaves us well placed to navigate the near-term challenges and enables us to look forward to prospering further as the trading environment improves.”