Coop Norway elected Runar Leite as the new chair of its board at the company's annual general meeting.
Leite will succeed Tore Tjomsland, who stepped down after five years in the role, the company noted.
Commenting on his new role, Leite stated, "It's a great honour to receive the trust of the annual meeting of Norway's largest consumer-owned company. Together with the rest of the board, I look forward to contributing to strengthening Coop's competitiveness and position in groceries and building materials.
"Coop creates and shares values, and it is unique to have a business in an industry that means so much to all of us, owned by 2.5 million Norwegians through their co-operatives. This uniqueness is a competitive advantage that I hope we will be even clearer about in the future."
Runar Leite
Leite is an experienced professional who currently heads the consultancy and accounting company Azets in Norway.
Azets has over 1,300 employees and a turnover of just under NOK 2 billion.
He served as a member of the board of the co-operative Coop Sørvest since 2018, with the last four years as its chairperson.
He also has one year's experience as a board member of Coop Norway.
Leite added, "When I first got involved as a member representative in Coop, I wanted to be able to contribute with my expertise and experience to strengthen the cooperative in the region in southern Norway where I live.
"It was rewarding and instructive. And it shows that in Coop it is possible for every customer to gain influence or share their expertise to help create an even better consumer co-operative."
He holds a management degree from the Forsvaret (Norwegian Armed Forces) and a Master's degree in economics and management from the University of Agder.
New Strategic Plan
Coop Norway also adopted a new strategy for Coop in Norway and for Coop Norge SA up to 2030 at the annual general meeting.
"The strategy is about what Coop should be for its customers, how we should deliver on our ambitious customer promises, and what values we base our work on. It will be an important task for the board to follow up this work," Leite stated.
Leite seeks to emphasise Coop's social responsibility in his role as the new chairman of the board.
"We are a large organisation that can have a positive impact on society in several areas. By virtue of being a large employer, Coop and the co-operative societies play a role in contributing to a more inclusive working life," he added.
