Thorntons calls in a former Gunner to help turnaround

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Keith Edelman, who was the managing director of Arsenal between 2000 and 2009, joins the board next week as a non-executive.

He is currently the chairman at Beale, the struggling retailer, and has also held senior roles at Storehouse, Ladbrokes, Carlton Communications and Grand Metropolitan.

Chairman John von Spreckelsen said: "Keith brings with him a wealth of experience from across a wide range of consumer markets."

Thorntons made a loss of £618,000 for the 28 weeks to January 7, which included the crucial Christmas trading period, compared with a profit of £8.3m the previous year.

This was largely due to falling margins and sales, as well as charges of £2.45m related to non-cash property-related writedowns. Total sales slipped to £130m from £133.5m.

The group is trying to turn around its performance by improving its product range, expanding its commercial division and exiting up to 180 under-performing stores.

Chief executive Jonathan Hart said: "We have good prospects in our commercial channel for Easter, with a strong order book."