Taylor Wimpey CEO Peter Redfern to retire after 15 years

Taylor Wimpey said Pete Redfern planned to leave the business after a replacement was found. He is likely to step down some time next year, which would mark his 15th year in charge of the company he helped to create.

Redfern traces his roots at Taylor Wimpey back to 2001, when he joined what was then George Wimpey as finance director. He became CEO in 2006 aged just 37, making him the youngest FTSE 100 CEO at the time. He led a merger with rival Taylor Woodrow a year later to create the modern business.

Redfern said he was stepping down to take a break after a long tenure and to spend more time with his five children, who are aged between 6 and 26.

“From a personal point of view, 15 years is a long time,” he told the Standard. “I went straight from school to university to work and I’ve never had a break.”

Redfern said the timing of his departure had been “an open conversation for some time” at board level. Taylor Wimpey said recruitment for his successor is in “advanced” stages, with both internal and external candidates being considered.

“We bought a lot of land last year and that gives us a real engine for growth for whoever comes in,” Redfern says.

News of Redfern’s departure comes after reports that activist investor Elliott Advisors had taken a position in the company’s shares. Elliott is well known for its aggressive pushes for change at companies it invests in and is currently waging campaigns at GlaxoSmithKline and SSE.

Redfern said he “never comment[s] on individual investors,” but said his departure “doesn’t relate to any conversations with any investor.”

Taylor Wimpey chair Irene Dorner said: “Pete has made an invaluable contribution to the business during his almost 15 years as CEO, including having successfully led the company through a global financial crisis and the recent pandemic.

“Pete has led a management team which has overseen the transformation of Taylor Wimpey into one of the largest housebuilders in the UK, with an industry leading landbank, a strong financial position and a clear and deliverable strategy for profitable growth. In addition, Pete will leave the business with a strong and differentiated culture he can be proud of creating.”

Shares in Taylor Wimpey rose 2.7p, or 1.6%, to 170.50p.

Redfern said it was not retiring but would take a break before returning to corporate life. He said he was looking at a “blank sheet of paper” when it came to his next move, adding: “It might be corporate, it might be public, it might be neither.”