Elior appoints Matt Wood as managing director of Lexington

Matt Wood has been appointed managing director of Lexington, replacing Julia Edmonds who was promoted to the Elior board last year.

Wood joins Lexington from occupational health and wellbeing business Health Management where he was managing director. Prior to this he spent eight years at Restaurant Associates where he worked his way up to head of strategic partnerships. During this time, he won Foodservice Cateys Regional Manager of the Year in 2015.

Wood starts his new role at Lexington tomorrow (5 January), where he will lead Elior's contract catering division in London, transitioning Lexington Catering, Lexington Independents and Lexington Reception Services into a new phase of growth. Wood will report to Robin Givens, managing director of UK contracts at Elior.

The appointment of Wood fills the position left by Julia Edmonds, who was promoted to the role of corporate business development director at Elior in September 2020. She remains involved in the Lexington business as non-executive chair.

She said: "I, along with the wider Lexington team am excited to welcome Matt who brings experience from his work in the hospitality sector and his most recent role working with clients who share a similar culture and values. As a real foodie he is determined to a make a positive impact in the midst of these difficult times and I know that Lexington will flourish under his leadership."

Wood added: "I can't wait to re-join the industry I love and be at the helm of a business I have always admired. My passion is in people development and I'm thrilled to have had the opportunity to engage with people in this role throughout my career. I'm looking forward to taking this agenda forward, moving Lexington onwards and upwards in its next stage of growth."