Eurostar International appoints Clare Hollingsworth as Chairman

The Board of Eurostar International today announces the appointment of Clare Hollingsworth as Chairman. Clare will succeed Richard Brown who has decided to step down from the Board when his three year term as Chairman comes to an end on 30 June this year.

The Board wishes to thank Richard for his major contribution to the development of Eurostar over the last 11 years and the transformation of Eurostar from an unincorporated partnership to a unified corporate entity, Eurostar International Ltd, in 2010.

Richard joined Eurostar as Chief Executive in 2002 and over seven years led the business through the successful launch of high-speed passenger rail services in the UK and the seamless transfer of Eurostar services from Waterloo to St Pancras station. He became Chairman of Eurostar in 2010 and went on to oversee the merger of the interests of the three partners, SNCF, LCR and SNCB, into a standalone company on 1 September 2010.

Richards decision to step down from the Board of Eurostar accompanies his decision earlier this year to become Chairman of the Department for Transports Franchise Advisory Panel in addition to his other non-executive roles.

Clare Hollingsworth has extensive experience of the transport sector and of customer facing businesses. She joined the Board of Eurostar as an independent non-executive director in 2010. She is also on the boards of Savills, the real estate advisor, Virgin Healthcare, Molnlycke AB, a Swedish medical technology company and Spire Healthcare. Prior to her non-executive roles she was Chief Executive Officer of Spire Healthcare and its predecessor business, BUPA Hospitals. Before Spire Healthcare she was Managing Director, Caledonian Airways.

Clares appointment as Chairman will become effective on 1 July 2013.

Richard Brown said: It has been a great privilege to be at the heart of Eurostars growth and expansion over the last decade but the time is right for me to hand over the reins. Eurostar is now an internationally respected brand and I have every confidence that it will go from strength to strength in the future. With her knowledge of the company and her experience of consumer-facing businesses, Clare is perfectly placed to lead the Board through the next phase of Eurostars development.

Clare Hollingsworth said: I am delighted to be taking on the Chairmanship of Eurostar at this time. Over the last three years the business has been transformed into a successful private entity delivering strong growth in passenger numbers and profitability. With the arrival of a new fleet of trains and the launch of additional services over the next couple of years, we are entering a new phase and I look forward to supporting the Eurostar team in driving the future growth of the business.