Cristina Álvarez, new president of El Corte Inglés
The new president will take over on January 15th.
BarcelonaEl Corte Inglés is going through a period of change. Just two months after dismiss Gastón Bottazzini Having already served as CEO and restructured the company's top executive team, the next change is at the top of the group. This Wednesday, the shopping center chain appointed Cristina Álvarez as its new president, replacing her sister Marta Álvarez, the company announced in a statement.
Thus, the company's board of directors unanimously supported Marta Álvarez's proposal to appoint her sister as the new president. The transition, which will take place on January 15, 2026, occurs within an "orderly, stable, and continuous" framework, according to the group, which explains that the change is due to a personal and voluntary decision by Marta Álvarez after six years in the position. However, she will remain a member of the board and the monitoring committee, focusing on the strategic management of the company's own fashion and home brands.
However, the change comes just three months after Marta Álvarez renewed her mandate for another five years, but ultimately only lasted four months. "With everyone's effort, we have achieved great results, allowing the company to face the future with confidence, always with the customer at the center, and relying on the daily work of everyone who makes up our company," Marta Álvarez stated in the press release.
A time of change
On October 30, the group dismissed its CEO, and the changes continue. At that time, according to the statement, the departure of the top executive was "by mutual agreement" between both parties "after a period of reflection." The distribution company also appointed Santiago Bau as general manager, with direct responsibility for all of the group's businesses, as well as the corporate and financial areas. Furthermore, Rafael Díaz Yeregui, who was deputy secretary of the board and general secretary of the company, assumed the roles of legal counsel, sustainability, and human resources directors.
After more thaneight years of internal disputesIn 2022, Marta Álvarez, daughter of the company's third president, Isidoro Álvarez Álvarez, became president of El Corte Inglés, which led to the departure of the group's then CEO, Víctor del Pozo. In recent years, the group has improved its results—despite the shock of the pandemic, which affected the entire retail sector—and closed 2024increasing profits6.7%, to 512 million euros; and turnover by 2%, to 16.675 billion.
"Cristina has my full support from the board and the monitoring committee to continue working for this company, to which I have dedicated practically my entire professional life," said Marta Álvarez in Wednesday's statement. The two sisters hold more than 18% of El Corte Inglés's capital through the company Cartera de Valores IASA.
