M&C Saatchi hires ex-Imperial boss Gareth Davis

M&C Saatchi has recruited Gareth Davis, a former chief executive of Imperial Tobacco, as deputy chairman as the advertising company seeks to replenish its board after a fractious clearout in December.

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Davis will join the board on 3 February. He ran Imperial Tobacco, now Imperial Brands, between 1996 and 2010 and is chairman of DS Smith. He will lead a review of M&C Saatchi's governance.

He will be joined on the boar by Colin Jones, who spent 20 years as finance director of Euromoney Institutional Investor before becoming chairman of Centaur Media in 2018.

M&C Saatchi said it would recruit more non-executive directors to strengthen its board. A profit warning and accounting errors led to the departure of founder Maurice Saatchi and three directors in December.

Jeremy Sinclair, M&C Saatchi's chairman, said: "We are delighted to welcome Gareth Davis and Colin Jones to the board. Both have extensive public company experience at the highest levels. We look forward to working with them to restore the company's health and reputation."