Roger Mark Whiteside OBE (born 13 June 1958) [1] is a British businessman, the former chief executive (CEO) of Greggs, the largest bakery chain in the United Kingdom. [2]
He was born in Fulham. His father was in the British Army, and he moved to RAF Wildenrath in Germany. He returned to Southampton when he was 11 and attended Saint George Catholic College before moving on to Itchen Sixth Form College, [3] then the University of Leeds, and gained a First Class degree in economics in 1979. [4]
He joined Marks & Spencer in 1979, and worked with Sir Richard Greenbury, and helped to set up the Simply Food division. He became head of the food division at Marks & Spencer, with Nigel Robertson[ clarify ].
He helped to set up Ocado in 2000, with Tim Steiner, Jason Gissing and Jonathan Faiman. He was joint managing director with Nigel Robertson. [5] Ocado sold products from Waitrose.
He was Chief Executive at Thresher Group from 2004 to 2007. The company was placed into administration in September 2009.
He became Chief Executive of Greggs on 4 February 2013.
Whiteside stepped down as Greggs CEO in May 2022. [6] Animal rights charity People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) honoured Whiteside's contribution to vegan foods, including the Greggs Vegan Sausage Roll, by naming a rescued pig in his honour. [7]
He lives in Wargrave, in Berkshire. He is married with two children.
He was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in the 2019 New Year Honours for services to Women and Equality. [8]
Marks and Spencer plc is a major British multinational retailer with headquarters in Paddington, London that specialises in selling clothing, beauty, home products and food products. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index; it had previously been in the FTSE 100 Index from its creation until 2019.
A sausage roll is a savoury dish, popular in current and former Commonwealth nations, consisting of sausage meat wrapped in puff pastry. Although variations are known throughout Europe and in other regions, the sausage roll is most closely associated with UK cuisine.
Quorn is a brand of meat substitute products, or the company that makes them. Quorn originated in the UK and is sold primarily in Europe, but is available in 14 countries. The brand is owned by parent company Monde Nissin.
Catherine Dalling Taylor Stihler is a Scottish former politician who is chief executive officer (CEO) of Creative Commons. A member of the Scottish Labour Party, she was a Member of the European Parliament (MEP) for Scotland from 1999 to 2019.
Ocado Group is a British business based in Hatfield, England, which licenses grocery technology. It also owns a 50% share in the UK retail business, Ocado.com. The company is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index.
Greggs plc is a British bakery chain. It specialises in savoury products such as bakes, sausage rolls, sandwiches and sweet items including doughnuts and vanilla slices. It is headquartered in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange, and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. Originally a high street chain, it has since entered the convenience and drive-thru markets, this achieved mainly through its partnership with EG Group.
Stuart Alan Ransom Rose, Baron Rose of Monewden, Kt is a British businessman and life peer, who was the executive chairman of Marks & Spencer until 2010, remaining as chairman until early 2011. He was knighted in 2008 for his services to the retail industry and created a Conservative life peer on 17 September 2014, taking the title Baron Rose of Monewden, of Monewden in the County of Suffolk.
St George Catholic VA College is a Catholic voluntary aided comprehensive secondary school for girls and boys in Swaythling, Southampton, Hampshire.
Percy Pig is a British brand of pig-shaped gummy raspberry, strawberry, cherry and grape-flavoured confectionery products made under licence in Germany by Katjes for Marks & Spencer which first appeared in stores in 1992. More than £10 million was grossed between June 2009 and 2010 in Percy Pig sales in Marks & Spencer's UK branches alone. They contain just under 3.5% fruit juice and since May 2022 have been suitable for vegans.
Animal Liberation Victoria Inc. (ALV) are an independent not-for-profit animal rights organisation incorporated in the state of Victoria, Australia, and are a registered charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNA). ALV were founded in 1978 by Patty Mark, with the mission of saving lives and ending animal exploitation. Their mission is to abolish the property status of animals, change speciesist attitudes and practices, educate the public about animal rights and veganism, and embrace the principles of non-violence and compassion. ALV is managed by an elected committee in accordance with the Victorian Incorporated Associations Act.
Leeds University Business School is a business school in the University of Leeds, in Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The school is accredited by AACSB, AMBA and EQUIS.
The New Year Honours 2014 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrations at the start of January.
The Honours Committee is a committee within the Cabinet Office of the Government of the United Kingdom formed to review nominations for national honours for merit, exceptional achievement or service. Twice yearly the Honours Committee submits formal recommendations for the British monarch's New Years and Birthday Honours. Members of the Honours Committee—which comprises a main committee and nine subcommittees in speciality areas—research and vet nominations for national awards, including knighthoods and the Order of the British Empire.
The 2017 Queen's Birthday Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of the Queen's Official Birthday celebrations during the month of June. The Queen's Birthday Honours for the United Kingdom were announced on 16 June; the honours for New Zealand were announced on 5 June and for Australia on 12 June.
Tim Steiner is the co-founder and chief executive (CEO) of Ocado, the FTSE 100 online grocery and technology business. As of May 2023, Ocado had a market capitalisation of nearly £3 billion. The 2020 Sunday Times Rich List estimates that Steiner is worth £403 million.
The 2019 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrations at the start of January and were officially announced in The London Gazette at 22:30 on 28 December 2018. Australia, an independent Realm, has a separate honours system and its first honours of the year, the 2019 Australia Day Honours, coincide with Australia Day on 26 January.
The Game Changers is a 2018 documentary film about athletes who have plant-based diets. The film interviews science experts in various fields, showcases success stories of athletes that have adopted such diets, highlights favorable scientific studies, and champions what the filmmakers argue are benefits of plant-based diets for both athletes and non-athletes. It received generally positive reviews by viewers but was criticized by some nutrition, fitness, and science communication professionals for what they identified as scientific inaccuracies and a perceived unbalanced support for strictly plant-based nutrition with several accusing the film of promoting misinformation and pseudoscience.
Lindy Cameron is a British civil servant who is chief executive officer at the National Cyber Security Centre. She was previously Director-General responsible for the Department for International Development’s programmes in Africa, Asia and the Middle East. She was awarded an Order of the Bath in the 2020 Birthday Honours for her services to international development.
Stuart Machin is a British business executive and the chief executive (CEO) of Marks & Spencer. He became CEO on 25 May 2022 when Steve Rowe stepped down. Machin is responsible for day-to-day leadership, with Katie Bickerstaffe as co-CEO in charge of online operations and data. Reuters called this an "unconventional leadership structure".