Jo Whitfield
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Early life
She was born in St Helens, then in Lancashire.
She took A-levels (including English Literature and politics) at Widnes Sixth Form College (now Riverside College, Halton).[3]
She attended Aston University from 1987 to 1991, studying management.
Career
Northern Foods
She worked for Northern Foods from 1995 to 2000.
Matalan
She worked for Matalan from 2002 to 2008.
She re-joined Matalan as chief executive Oofficer from March 2023 until October 2024.[4]
Asda
She joined Asda in July 2008. She rejoined Asda as a non-executive director in February 2025 after eight years.[2]
Co-op
She joined the Co-op in April 2016 as finance director for Co-op Food and Retail. She became Chief Executive of Co-op Food in March 2017, making her the first female CEO of a British food retailer.[5][6] In 2019, she received the Veuve Clicquot businesswoman of the year award for her work on improving the stores' sales and sustainable practices.[7]
Whitfield was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 2021 New Year Honours for services to retail and the food supply chain during the COVID-19 response.[8]
Personal life
She lives in Trafford borough, in Altrincham. She married in April 2003 in Manchester.