The managing director of Waitrose and deputy chairman of the John Lewis Partnership, Mark Price, is standing down.
The BBC’s business editor Kamal Ahmed believes Mr Price wants to apply for the role of chairman of Channel 4.
He is already deputy chairman at the broadcaster and Lord Burns, the current chairman, is due to retire shortly.
In a statement, Mr Price said he was at “the start of developing” his plans.
Waitrose’s Retail Director, Rob Collins will succeed Mr Price at the supermarket.
Mr Price has been at the head of Waitrose for 9 years and said he “always had in mind that ten years would be about the right length of time” before stepping down.
“In addition to continuing as deputy chairman of Channel 4, when I leave in April I shall be working with a major global firm to do client consultancy in the area of employee engagement and I have accepted several invitations to give guest lectures at business schools and universities,” Mr Price said.
He has worked for the John Lewis Partnership, which owns Waitrose, for 33 years.
Analysis: Kamal Ahmed, BBC business editor
Mr Price warned of turmoil in the sector earlier this year when profits at Waitrose dipped by a quarter.
Mr Price is 55 and appears to want one more big challenge in his career.
With the chairman of John Lewis, Sir Charlie Mayfield, not going anywhere soon (and he’s younger than Mr Price at 49), the head of Waitrose has decided that the grass is likely to be greener elsewhere.
Chairman of John Lewis Partnership, Sir Charlie Mayfield, said of Mr Price: “He has had a long and distinguished career with the Partnership and his leadership of Waitrose has seen outstanding success.
“Rob Collins has been a central figure in Waitrose’s management team for a number of years and his strong leadership skills and operational success have ensured that he has been a central part of the board’s thinking on succession planning for some time.”
The government is reviewing the future of Channel 4 and it is thought Mr Price’s commercial background will help it into the future.
During Mr Price’s tenure, Waitrose enjoyed many years of rapid growth, but supermarket price wars and the arrival of the German discounters, Aldi and Lidl, have dented profits and shaken up the sector.
Kamal Ahmed said Mr Price wants “one more big challenge in his career.”
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