The boss of one of the Woolworths supermarket group, CEO Brad Banducci, is quitting the highly-paid role.
The exit follows his bombshell walkout from an ABC interview this week after being questioned on price gouging.
Woolworths Group made the announcement on Wednesday morning saying Banducci, who has faced growing criticism in his role recently, would retire after 13 years with the company.
He has been in the top job for more than eight years.
Banducci is CEO of the Woolworths Group across Australia and New Zealand. In NZ, the company owns Woolworths and Countdown supermarkets.
The interview comes as the Coles and Woolworths chains, who were both examined on Four Corners, face mounting pressure over the price of food in Australia. Both companies will face a Senate inquiry to investigate their market power and pricing decisions.
First female CEO
Amanda Bardwell, the managing director of the supermarket group's ecommerce arm, will become its 13th CEO - and first female - when Banducci retires on September 1.
Chairman Scott Perkins Banducci had led a remarkable turnaround of the company and built a team of amazing calibre during his time with the group.
"The test of any CEO is to leave the business in much better shape than when they started," Perkins said.
"On that simple metric, history will judge Brad to have been one of Woolworth Group's finest leaders."
Woolworths was also under fire about its decision to abandoned selling Australia Day items, with some calling for a boycott of the supermarket.
The supermarket chain also announced Wednesday that it suffered a A$781 million first-half loss, including a $NZ1.6 billion ($A1.5 billion) writedown of goodwill from its New Zealand supermarkets and A$209 change in accounting treatment of its holdings of Endeavour Group, the alcohol retailer it spun off in 2021.
Excluding those items, Woolworths posted a A$929 million net profit after tax for the six months to December 31, up 2.5% from a year ago.
Sales were up 4.4% to A$34.6 billion.
Banducci said called the first-half result mixed, with solid results from its flagship Australian supermarkets but a very challenging trading environment in New Zealand and for its Big W stores.
"Outside of solid trading in key events like Black Friday and Christmas, customers are increasingly cautious and trading down," Banducci said of Big W.
Perkins said Bardwell was chosen after an intensive international search process supported by external consultants.
Perkins called her a proven leader, business builder and modern retailer who had taken WooliesX from infancy to a A$7 billion market-leading business.
"Amanda is highly respected throughout the organisation and I know, like Brad, will live our purpose and work hard to achieve Woolworths Group's full potential."
Perkins will be paid $2.15 million year in fixed compensation, and be eligible for up to $6.9 million a year in short — and long-term incentive payments.
- with AAP
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