Simon Douglas, the former boss of defunt entertainment retailer Zavvi, is set to become the new chief executive of nightclub operator Luminar.

Luminar’s current boss Stephen Thomas will step down at the end of the week, but will stay on until July to ensure a smooth transition to Douglas, who is expected to join next month.

Douglas is a former HMV executive, who then moved to Virgin Retail Group and later Zavvi, which collapsed in December 2008.

He went on to form entertainment retailer Head and opened a handful of stores before closing most of them this year.

The appointment has reignited speculation about a possible tie-up between the nightclub operator and HMV.