Saga Plc
SAGA:LN
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Overview
Company Profile
Having spent our first 30 years focused on travel, Saga launched Saga Magazine and developed home and motor insurance and financial services in the 1980s. Private medical and pet insurance followed in the 1990s, along with the launch of our own cruise ship operation. The strength of the Saga brand provides the Group with the ability to develop in-house or partner with suppliers to offer our customers highly differentiated, competitively priced products which meet their evolving needs.
Saga exists to create exceptional experiences every day, while being a driver of positive change in our markets and communities. At the heart of our business model is our drive to know more about our customers' wants and needs so that we are best placed to serve them.
Applying this approach over the past 70 years has enabled us to become the UK's specialist provider of products and services to people aged over 50 in the UK. The Saga brand has become one of the most recognised and trusted brands amongst UK consumers in this demographic and is recognised for its high-quality products and exceptional standards of service. These include cruises, holidays, insurance, personal finance and the Saga Magazine.
Classification
Financials
News & Media
Corporate
Board of Directors
Andrew Goodsell
Non-Executive Chairman
Andrew joined Saga in 1992 as Business Development Manager, Saga Services. He became Saga Group Business Development Director in 1995, Chief Executive of Saga Services and Saga Investment Direct in 1999, Deputy Group Chief Executive in 2001 and Chief Executive and Chairman in 2004. He has led two management buy outs at Saga. The second, in 2007, brought together Saga and the AA under the holding company Acromas Holdings. Andrew was Executive Chairman of the AA from 2007 until Acromas Holdings sold it in 2014; and Executive Chairman of Saga from 2007 until he became Non-Executive Chairman on 1 July 2015. He brings great experience of the Group to his board role.
Lance Batchelor
Group Chief Executive Officer
Lance joined Saga as Group Chief Executive in March 2014. Prior to that he was CEO of Domino’s Pizza Group plc from 2011–2014 and CEO of Tesco Mobile from 2008–2011. His earlier experience includes senior marketing roles at Procter & Gamble, Amazon.com and Vodafone. Lance’s first career was as a Royal Navy submarine officer. He holds an MBA from Harvard Business School, and is a Trustee of the National Gallery. Lance brings a wealth of senior operational experience in listed companies to his role at Saga.
Jonathan Hill
Group Chief Financial Officer
Jonathan joined Saga in April 2015 from Bovis Homes Group plc where he was Group Finance Director. Prior to that, he held various senior roles within TUI Travel and Centrica. Jonathan qualified as a Chartered Accountant at Price Waterhouse in London. He brings a wealth of senior financial operational and corporate listed experience to his role at Saga.
Philip Green
Senior Independent Non-Executive Director
Philip is currently Chairman of Carillion plc. He is also Chairman of BakerCorp, a US industrial services company owned by Permira, and Chairman Designate of Williams & Glyn. Previously, Philip was Chairman of Clarkson plc, Chief Executive of United Utilities Group plc and Chief Executive of Royal P&O Nedlloyd NV. His earlier business experience includes serving as Chief Operating Officer of Reuters Group plc and Chief Operating Officer of DHL for Europe and Africa. Philip is also the UK Prime Minister’s adviser on corporate responsibility and Chairman of Sentebale, a charity set up by HRH Prince Harry. Philip brings his experience of running a variety of complex international organisations and acting as an executive and non-executive director of many public companies to the Board.
Ray King
Independent Non-Executive Director
Ray is currently a Non-Executive Director of Infinis Energy plc and Rothesay Life Limited. Previously, he was Chief Executive of Bupa from 2008-2012, after serving as Group Finance Director from 2001-2008. Before Bupa, Ray was a Non-Executive Director of Friends Provident plc, Deputy Chief Executive of Parity Group plc, Director of Group Finance and Control at Diageo plc and Group Finance Director of Southern Water plc. Ray is also a Reporting Panel Member of the Competition and Markets Authority and a member of the Audit and Assurance Council of the Financial Reporting Council. His financial experience coupled with his knowledge of running a business similar to Saga, and his recent Non-Executive Director experiences including that of chairing an Audit Committee are all immensely helpful to the Board.
Orna NiChionna,
Independent Non-Executive Director
Orna is currently Senior Independent Non-Executive Director of Royal Mail plc. Previously, she was Senior Independent Non-Executive Director of HMV plc, Northern Foods plc and Bupa and a Non-Executive Director of the Bank of Ireland UK Holdings plc and Bristol & West plc. Orna is also currently the Deputy Chairman of the National Trust and a former Partner at McKinsey & Company. Whilst at McKinsey & Company, she looked after many consumer facing clients and brings these skills to the Board along with her considerable experience in other Non-Executive Director roles.
Gareth Williams
Independent Non-Executive Director
Gareth is currently a Non-Executive Director of YSC Limited and WNS (Holdings) Limited. Previously, he was Human Resources Director of Diageo plc and held a series of key positions in human resources at Grand Metropolitan plc. Gareth’s contributions to the Board are on all aspects of human resources and his experience of working at Director level in a consumer facing organisation also allows him to contribute to all other subjects of debate.
James Arnell
Non-Executive Director
James has been a Partner at Charterhouse Capital Partners LLP since 1998. He was involved in the acquisition of Saga by the Charterhouse Funds in 2004 and in Charterhouse’s investment in the Acromas Group in 2007. He has been a member of the Saga and Acromas Boards throughout the period of Charterhouse’s investment. He is also a Non-Executive Director of various other companies and has been involved in Charterhouse’s investments in the UK, France and Germany. James’s role on the Board is to represent the views of Charterhouse, but his professional and business experiences also ensure that he makes a very valuable contribution.
Peveril (\'Pev\') Hooper
Non-Executive Director
Pev is a Partner at CVC Capital Partners. In addition to Saga, Pev is responsible for CVC funds’ investments in Merlin Entertainments, the AA, Virgin Active, Domestic & General, and SkyBet - and has been a non-executive director on the board of these and other CVC fund portfolio companies. He joined CVC in 2003 after working in mergers & acquisitions at Schroders and Citigroup. Pev represents the views of CVC on the Saga board, but also brings broader experience of public and private company boards across numerous consumer facing businesses.
Charles Sherwood,
Non-Executive Director
Charles has been a Partner of Permira Advisers (formerly Schroder Ventures) since 1985. He has served on the firm’s holding company board and investment committee. Charles has been a Non-Executive Director of Acromas and Saga since 2007. He has also served as a Non-Executive Director on the boards of a number of Permira’s investments including Homebase, the AA Group, Provimi and Just Retirement. Charles’s role on the Board is to represent the views of Permira; he has served on the boards of many other companies during his career and brings this knowledge and wide experience to his Board role with Saga.
Charles Sherwood,
Non-Executive Director
Charles has been a Partner of Permira Advisers (formerly Schroder Ventures) since 1985. He has served on the firm’s holding company board and investment committee. Charles has been a Non-Executive Director of Acromas and Saga since 2007. He has also served as a Non-Executive Director on the boards of a number of Permira’s investments including Homebase, the AA Group, Provimi and Just Retirement. Charles’s role on the Board is to represent the views of Permira; he has served on the boards of many other companies during his career and brings this knowledge and wide experience to his Board role with Saga.