Blakemore has appointed Lawrence Shirazian as the managing director of the company’s newly formed foodservice business unit.
Shirazian will now lead a unit that combines Blakemore’s Foodservice, Fresh Meat, and Wholesale divisions and was previously in work consulting for private equity and software companies in the hospitality space.
He was also previously managing director at Aramark UK leading operations across 700 locations and 8,000 colleagues. Shirazian said: “I am thrilled to be joining A.F. Blakemore to deliver the strategic vision at such an exciting time for their Foodservice businesses. I share the passion for creating value by providing our partners with great food and drink solutions borne out of a deep understanding of their customers and a need for operational efficiency.”
Read more: Blakemore reports 3.9% annual sales increase
Carol Welch, chief executive, added: “We’re delighted that Lawrence is joining us. His knowledge extends across a breadth of sectors making him ideally placed to oversee the newly formed business unit. He brings a customer first approach coupled with deep operational understanding that will ensure we continue to create value through growth and productivity for our partners and our business.”
A.F. Blakemore recently announced sales of £1.2bn and a 65% increase in EBITDA for year ending May 2023, with a further 44% increase in EBITDA for the first 24 weeks of 2023/24.
As well as their Wholesale and Foodservice businesses, Blakemore also operates 900 convenience retail stores including company owned and independent SPAR retail partners. The group also owns the Philpotts brand, a chain of sandwich, coffee and bakery stores.
