John Barton (businessman)

Summary

Robert John Orr Barton (23 August 1944 – 4 December 2021) was a British businessman, who was chairman of Next plc and EasyJet.

John Barton
Born
Robert John Orr Barton

(1944-08-23)23 August 1944
Lahore, British India (now Pakistan)
Died4 December 2021(2021-12-04) (aged 77)
NationalityBritish
EducationGordonstoun
Alma materUniversity of Strathclyde
Occupation(s)Chairman, Next plc
Chairman, EasyJet
Board member ofNext plc
EasyJet
SSP Group
SpouseAnne Barton

Early life edit

Barton was born in August 1944,[1] in Lahore during the British Raj. He was educated at Gordonstoun, completed an MBA at University of Strathclyde, and was a chartered accountant.[2][3]

Career edit

Barton became a member of the board of Next in 2002, deputy chairman in 2004 and chairman in 2006. He was the chairman of EasyJet and a non-executive director of SSP Group.[4][3][5][6]

Barton was the chief executive of JIB Group, and chairman of Cable & Wireless, Catlin Group, Jardine Lloyd Thompson, Wellington Underwriting, and Brit plc, and a non-executive director of WH Smith and Hammerson.[4][3]

Personal life edit

Barton lived in the UK.[1] He was married to Anne.[7] He died suddenly on 4 December 2021, at the age of 77.[7][8]

References edit

  1. ^ a b "NEXT PLC - Officers (free information from Companies House)". Drbeta.companieshouse.gov.uk. Archived from the original on 24 April 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  2. ^ ‘BARTON, (Robert) John (Orr)’, Who's Who 2017, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 2017
  3. ^ a b c "John Barton | Saïd Business School". Sbs.ox.ac.uk. Archived from the original on 9 June 2016. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Our board – Next Plc". Nextplc.co.uk. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  5. ^ Martin Strydom (17 April 2013). "John Barton to be next easyJet chairman". Telegraph.co.uk.
  6. ^ Jennifer Rankin. "EasyJet replaces Mike Rake with Next chairman John Barton". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 April 2016.
  7. ^ a b Sweney, Mark (6 December 2021). "John Barton, former chair of easyJet and Next, dies aged 77". The Guardian. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
  8. ^ "John Barton obituary". The Times. 6 December 2021. Retrieved 6 December 2021.