Andrew Harrison in

Andrew Harrison

Commander · DISC type D
Managing Director at WHSmith
📍 Altrincham, England, United Kingdom

Andrew Harrison is the UK CEO of WHSmith, leveraging extensive board-level experience in digital transformation and corporate strategy from the travel sector. A graduate of The University of Sheffield with a First Class BA Hons, he previously led two of the UKs top four airports, demonstrating expertise in complex commercial and operational environments.

Andrew has a background in community-focused leadership, having served as the Chairman of The John Smiths Stadium, home to professional football and rugby league clubs. He has also been recognized for his enthusiastic support and significant fundraising contributions to the Retail Trust, a charity supporting retail sector employees.

He successfully established a £140m EBITDA e-commerce business, creating new and diversified value streams for a major airports group.

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Experience
30 Years
Current Role
Managing Director
Job Level
Mid-senior
Location
Altrincham, England, United Kingdom
Personality Overview

How Andrew shows up

Strong-Willed
Decisive
Impact-Driven

They like to be in a position where they can control the conversation and terms. They like to act fast and expect others to do the same. More than the product, they care about the effectiveness of the product.

Priorities

Topics Andrew cares about

Travel Retail Innovation
He is focused on evolving WHSmith's "one-stop-shop" concept by expanding into health, beauty, and food-to-go categories to enhance the customer journey in travel hubs.
Disability Inclusion
As the Executive Sponsor for WHSmith's disABILITY Network, he actively champions creating a supportive and inclusive environment for colleagues with additional challenges.
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Career

Work history

5-2021
Managing Director
WHSmith
2017 - 9-2020
CEO Airport Services
MAG (Airports Group)
2016 - 2017
Chief Strategy Officer, MAG
MAG (Airports Group)
2-2015 - 5-2021
Chairman
The John Smith's Stadium
2013 - 2016
Managing Director, London Stansted Airport
MAG (Airports Group)
In the press

Media appearances

Andrew Harrison on a landmark opening for WHSmith Travel at Birmingham Airport. Featured in The Moodie Davitt Podcast (Acast)
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Andrew Harrison: WHSmith's UK boss on piloting the business through its latest bout of turbulence. Featured in Retail Week
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Education
1991 - 1995
First Class BA Hons
The University of Sheffield
Social presence
in
Behavioral profile

DISC profile (public)

D

Dominance (D)

Dominance (D) reflects how goal and task oriented a person is, and their ability to accomplish results irrespective of how demanding the circumstances might be. Those scoring high tend to be motivated by winning, competition, and success.

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