Walmart names former Tesco veteran as new President of Jet.com
Walmart has tapped grocery veteran Simon Belsham to be its new president of Jet.com, the e-commerce business it acquired for $3bn in 2016.
The retailer has brought on Simon Belsham as president of Jet.com, in a bid to expand the company’s online grocery business and compete with e-commerce giants and retailers Amazon, Kroger and Target.
He succeeds Liza Landsman, who left Jet.com to join venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates.
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Belsham spent seven years at Tesco, one of Britain's top grocery retailers, and helped oversee its successful delivery push.
He has also worked for British online supermarket Ocado, to help strengthen its nonfood e-commerce sales.
“With Jet grocery being an integral part of the strategy, Simon brings incredible experience in scaling grocery delivery and his unique background in converging technology and retail to create amazing experiences for customers,” CEO Marc Lore said in a memo to his employees.
At Jet.com, Belsham will be "driving an integrated customer experience with grocery and general merchandise," according to the company.
Walmart’s e-commerce growth has slowed in recent months. Online sales increased 23% in its most recent quarter, less than half the rate of growth than the previous three quarters.
Earlier this year, Walmart revealed that it was going to same-day grocery delivery service to 100 markets by the end of the year, in a move that may leverage Jet.com to make same-day deliveries in New York City.
Speaking of his appointment, Belsham said: "There are so many ways technology can change retail and be a force for good in our lives. In my view, there is no business better positioned to take advantage of the opportunity ahead than the combination of Walmart and Jet."
