Nick Samuel, former chief executive of fashion retailer Hobbs, has joined the board of Blacks Leisure as a non-executive director.

Existing Blacks non-executive director Claude Littner is to take on the new role of deputy chairman. Andrew Mallett, executive director of Aspire Oil Services, has also been named a non-executive and Clive Sherling will leave the retailer to pursue other business interests.

Blacks Leisure chairman David Bernstein said the appointments would contribute towards the revival of Blacks.

He said: “Nick and Andrew’s achievements in fashion retail and turnaround situations respectively will add further depth to the senior team.

“These appointments, together with that of Marc Lombardo, our new finance director who started last week, and the recovery strategies that have been put in place, provide a solid foundation to enable Blacks to successfully execute its turnaround plan.”