Gillian Clare McDonald (born 15 May 1964) is a British businesswoman. She has previously been the CEO of Costa Coffee, CEO of Halfords, CEO of McDonald's UK and head of Marks & Spencer's non-food business, overseeing clothing, home and beauty.
She began her career as a graduate marketing trainee with Colgate Palmolive.[4] In 1990, she joined British Airways as a brand manager, and worked there for 16 years, rising to head of global marketing, before joining McDonald's in 2006.[5][6]
In 2006, she joined McDonald's as chief marketing officer for the UK and northern Europe, and in 2010, was promoted to CEO of McDonald's UK and president of North West Europe.[4][6]
In May 2015, McDonald replaced Matt Davies (who left to join Tesco), as CEO of Halfords,[8] on a basic salary of £500,000 plus bonuses.[4]
In May 2017, McDonald was announced to be taking over Marks & Spencer's non-food business in the autumn, and in her role reported to CEO Steve Rowe.[9][10][11]
In July 2019, McDonald left Marks & Spencer after failing to secure an uplift in clothing sales, with Rowe assuming responsibility of the clothing and home division.[12][13]
In November 2019, McDonald was named CEO of Costa Coffee, and started on 2 December 2019.[14] On 13 July 2022, Costa Coffee announced that McDonald was stepping down as CEO of the company to join McDonald's in an international role.[15]