One of Scotland’s top retailers has joined The Entertainer, Britain’s biggest independent toy chain, as group chief executive.

Andrew Murphy was most recently group chief operating officer at John Lewis Partnership (JLP) having begun his career with the company in Aberdeen.

Born in Cyprus and raised in Penicuik, he rose through the ranks, running the Edinburgh store and the Scottish business and was subsequently appointed retail director for the entire department store business and joining the John Lewis operating board.

In 2015 he brought large elements of John Lewis and Waitrose together as a single operational entity to be more cost effective and agile. He was appointed chief information officer, a role he held until 2020 and his appointment as COO.

He was chairman of Essential Edinburgh and of the Scottish Retail Consortium. He co-chairs the Scottish Government’s Retail Industry Leadership Group with Finance Minister Tom Arthur.

Gary Grant, founder and executive chairman of The Entertainer, commented: “We are looking forward to welcoming Andrew to The Entertainer family and using his knowledge, skills and experience to continue to grow our business both here in the UK and globally.”

Mr Murphy added: “I’m delighted to have been trusted with overseeing the continued growth and development of this fantastic business.

“With over 170 UK shops, a further 220 globally, and a growing product distribution business, The Entertainer along with Early Learning Centre, Poly and Addo Play have become a mainstay in the lives of children and parents across Britain & many other countries. I can’t wait to join the successful team behind such a great British success story.”

He will take up his new role on the 16 October.