Shares in Big Yellow Group PLC (LSE:BYG) slipped 1.1% on Monday after the self-storage operator revealed that Chief Executive Officer Jim Gibson intends to retire in July.
Gibson, a co-founder of Big Yellow who has led the company as CEO since 2003, will step down from both his executive position and the board following the company’s Annual General Meeting on July 20, 2026, ending a 23-year tenure in the role.
The company announced that current Chief Operating Officer John Hunter will succeed Gibson as chief executive. Hunter joined Big Yellow in April 2024 as COO and became a board member in July 2025. Before joining the group, he served as UK COO at HomeServe PLC and held senior leadership positions at Dixons Carphone PLC, bringing more than two decades of experience across the retail and consumer services sectors. He qualified as a Chartered Accountant with Arthur Andersen in 2001.
Executive Chair Nicholas Vetch said succession planning for the leadership transition has been underway for nearly four years. Gibson co-founded Big Yellow in September 1998 and played a central role in developing the business into a leading UK self-storage company with a market capitalisation of around £2 billion.
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