Justin King joined Terra Firma as Vice Chairman and Head of Portfolio Businesses in September 2015. He sits on the boards of the General Partners and is a member of Terra Firma’s Management Committee.
He was previously the CEO of Sainsbury’s between 2004 and 2014, where he led the business through a major turnaround which led to nine years of profit growth. Before joining Sainsbury’s, he was Head of Food at Marks & Spencer. He held prior roles at Asda, Haagen-Dazs, PepsiCo and Mars in a thirty-year career spanning consumer goods and grocery retailing.
King has previously served as a director of Staples and a board member of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games, and was on the audit committee of both organisations. He was also a member of the Prime Minister’s Business Advisory Group.
King is well known for his interest in motorsport, supporting his son who races in GP2. After the Manor Formula One team fell into administration, he played a key role in its recovery through a company voluntary arrangement, becoming interim Chairman.
In 2013, King was named Most Admired Business Leader by Management Today as well as Britain’s Most Impressive Businessman in the IPSOS-MORI Captains of Industry Report.
King received an undergraduate degree in Business Administration from the University of Bath, and in 2009 the University of Bath awarded him with an Honorary Doctorate of Business Administration. King was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) in 2011.
In speeches he tackles the vagaries of leadership, including his list of ‘ten Cs’ for great leadership. He also considers his personal journey and the lessons it’s delivered, as well as ethical business.
