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Chief executive of BusinessLive publisher Reach plc to step down

Simon Fox has been in the top job at Reach for seven years and will be replaced by former Ladbrokes chief Jim Mullen

Simon Fox will step down as CEO of Reach plc next month

The chief executive of BusinessLive publisher Reach plc is stepping down from the post after seven years.

Simon Fox will leave the listed group in August to be replaced by Jim Mullen who was most recently chief executive of betting firm Ladbrokes Coral.

Reach plc is the º£½ÇÊÓÆµ's largest newspaper and online media company, owning national brands such as the Daily Mirror and Daily Express and regional titles including the Birmingham Mail, Manchester Evening News and Liverpool Echo.

During Mr Fox's tenure, it has carried out two major buyout deals of rival media brands - Local World in 2015 and the Express and Star titles with OK! magazine last year. After that deal the company rebranded from Trinity Mirror to Reach.

The company has also transformed itself into a digital-first publishing outlet and rebranded its websites as ‘Live' to underpin this change in strategy.

In a statement to the stock exchange today, Reach plc said Mr Fox would leave on August 16.

He said: "There is never an ideal time to leave an organisation but if there were it would be now.

"The integration of the Express and Star has been successfully completed, digital growth is accelerating and our trading and cash position are strong.