N Brown’s chief operating officer Andy Haywood is exiting the business, Retail Week can reveal.

Haywood will leave his role in spring next year. The business has kicked off the hunt for a chief technology officer, which will replace the COO role.

Haywood joined N Brown in August 2014 as chief information officer and became chief operating officer in February 2016. He was previously group chief information officer at the Co-op and IT director at Boots.

At N Brown he has supervised work to bring its tech up to scratch as it has transformed from a catalogue business to a digital one.

Haywood said: “N Brown is an amazing business and with the strong executive team there, I know it will continue to go from strength to strength.

“It’s been an amazing period of transformation. I’m looking forward to the new and exciting challenge of building a portfolio of advisory and non-executive roles, there’s certainly a huge appetite out there of business looking to transform through tech.”

The Angela Spindler-led fashion business is currently focused on building on its transformation and strengthening its three ‘power brands’, JD Williams, Jacamo and Simply Be.

It posted a 1.8% rise in adjusted pre-tax profit to £32.2m at its last half year, with ‘power brand’ sales rising 14.3%.