The Board of St Ives plc announces the following changes in the senior management of the Company.  As part of an overall management succession plan, Brian Edwards, Chief Executive Officer, will step down on 3rd August, 2009 following the end of the Company’s financial year.  Brian Edwards has been with the Group since 1978 and was appointed Managing Director in 1990 and Chief Executive Officer in 2007.  His contribution to the Group over this period has been unsurpassed.

Patrick Martell will succeed Brian Edwards as Chief Executive Officer at the beginning of the new financial year.  Patrick Martell joined Clays Limited, the Group’s book business, in 1980: his recent roles have been as Managing Director of Clays from 2000 to 2005 and since then as Managing Director Media Products and from August 2007 Managing Director UK Operations.  Patrick has played a key part in establishing Clays as the market leading book supplier to the UK market.

Simon Ward indicated in the middle of last year that he did not see the quoted sector as providing attractive long term opportunities and he has now decided that he wishes to retire as a director of St Ives plc with effect from 31 March 2009 and return to the private equity sector.  The Board is pleased to report that he has agreed to provide consultancy services on a part-time basis for the Group for an initial period of twelve months.  Simon joined St Ives in 2004 as part of the acquisition of SP Group, of which he was the founder and a significant shareholder and which now forms the core of the Group’s point-of-sale and retail related businesses.  He was appointed to the Board in December 2006 and has served as Commercial CEO.  In particular, Simon has been responsible for the successful development of the Group Sales offering and we thank him for this and his overall contribution to the business.