SSP names convenience foods boss Patrick Coveney as new CEO

Patrick Coveney is to take over as group chief executive of travel caterer SSP Group on 31 March 2022.

He will replace outgoing chief executive Simon Smith, who is to step down in December to pursue a new opportunity at a private equity-backed business.

Coveney will join SSP from Greencore Group, a producer of convenience foods in the UK and Ireland which is a member of the FTSE 250, where he has been group chief executive officer since 2008.

Under his leadership, Greencore has grown into an international leader in the food-to-go market and across the UK, US, and Europe, and built sustainability into its future strategy.

Prior to joining Greencore, Coveney worked for nine years at management consultants McKinsey & Company in Europe and North America, and he also serves as non-executive director at nutrition company Glanbia and communications firm Core Media.

Mike Clasper, chair of SSP’s board, said the company was emerging from the pandemic with “considerable momentum”.

He added: “Patrick is a strong and strategic leader, combining this with proven financial and operational experience in some of the most competitive categories in the food sector. His customer and colleague focus make him ideally placed to lead SSP to future success.”

Coveney said: “I look forward to working with the teams to seize the many opportunities that lie ahead and to delivering future growth and returns for SSP and its shareholders."

Before the pandemic, SSP served around one and a half million customers every day at approximately 180 airports and 300 rail stations in 36 countries around the world and operated more than 550 international, national and local brands.