UK's On The Beach says founder Cooper to step down as CEO

Holiday package provider On The Beach OTB said on Thursday its founder, Simon Cooper, will step down as chief executive officer within a year and finance chief Shaun Morton will take over the top job.

Travel firms such as OTB have been pressured by the deepening cost-of-living crisis in the UK as people increasingly cut down on non-essential spending including overseas holidays.

Cooper, 50, who founded On the Beach in 2004 and played a pivotal role in growing it into one of the UK's leading online beach holiday retailers, would remain on the board as non-executive founder-director and would be actively involved in the business.

Cooper is one of the top three shareholders in the company, with a 5.64% stake, according to Refinitiv Eikon data.

Morton, 40, who joined OTB four years ago, was appointed as finance chief in July 2020 and has been instrumental in guiding the group through the pandemic.

The company said the timing of Morton's elevation as CEO would depend on the appointment of an experienced CFO.