Doug Gurr

Doug Gurr
Born Douglas John Gurr
July 1964 (age 54)
Leeds, England
Residence London and Yorkshire, England
Nationality British
Alma mater University of Cambridge
University of Edinburgh
Occupation Businessman
Title Head of Amazon UK
Term 2016–present
Predecessor Chris North
Spouse(s) Married
Children 2

Douglas John Gurr (born July 1964) is a British businessman, and a global vice-president and head of Amazon UK since 2016. He formerly taught at Aarhus University and held positions in the United Kingdom civil service, at McKinsey & Co., and at Asda.

Early life

Gurr was born in Leeds, England, in July 1964, to parents from New Zealand, and his father was head of the English department at the University of Nairobi.[1] He earned two degrees in mathematics from the University of Cambridge, and a doctorate in computing from the University of Edinburgh.[2]

Career

Gurr began his career as an academic teaching maths and computing at the Aarhus University in Denmark,[3] before working for the United Kingdom's Civil Service.[4]

Gurr then worked for McKinsey & Co, for six years, where he became a partner.[1][2][4] He then founded Blueheath, an internet-enabled stockless wholesaler, which was later sold to Booker Group.[2][4]

He was then a main board director of Asda.[2] He joined Amazon in 2011, and was China country manager from 2014 to 2016, before becoming UK country manager in 2016, succeeding Chris North who left to become CEO of Shutterfly.[2][5]

Gurr is the chairman of the British Heart Foundation since 2015, and a non-executive director of the UK government's Department for Work and Pensions.[2][5][6]

In July 2018, Gurr received widespread attention for his claim that a no-deal Brexit could lead to civil unrest "within two weeks".[7][8]

Personal life

Gurr is married, with two children, and lives in London and Yorkshire.[6][9] He is a former Scottish international triathlete, and a keen ski mountaineer.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 "From the Arctic to the Amazon: a Leeds polyglot expanding Bezos' reach". Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Doug Gurr". www.gov.uk. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  3. 1 2 "Dr Doug Gurr – Speakers for Schools". www.speakers4schools.org. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 "Dr. Doug Gurr". www.landmarktrust.org.uk. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  5. 1 2 Butler, Sarah (27 April 2016). "Former Asda director takes helm of Amazon's UK operations". the Guardian. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  6. 1 2 "Board of Trustees British Heart Foundation". Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  7. ↑ "No-deal Brexit could spark civil unrest 'within two weeks' warns UK head of Amazon". Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  8. ↑ "Amazon reportedly issued a dark warning about Brexit in a private meeting with the UK government". Retrieved 23 July 2018.
  9. ↑ "Londoner's Diary: Bog standard delivery haunts Amazon's chief". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 23 July 2018.
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