Coooking Marvellous md Joan Woulfe to take up the role as chair of Cookshop & Housewares Association, as Trevor Draper steps down following the sale of his cookshop.
Trevor Draper and his wife Lesley founded The Billericay Cookshop in 2003 but recently sold the Essex business. Under the new owners, the retail outlet is set to become a delicatessen which will include some cookware in its offering.

At the time, Trevor Draper said: "We wish the new owners every success. We have enjoyed our 12 wonderful years in the housewares industry and look forward to keeping in touch with the many friends we have made."

Alan Hawkins, ceo of the British Independent Retailers Association (BIRA) of which CHA is a division, said: "We wish Trevor well in his retirement and thank him for his hard work on behalf of the CHA and BIRA in various roles over the years."

Vice chair Joan Woulfe, managing director of Cooking Marvellous, has agreed to step up to the position of CHA chair.

She said: "I joined BIRA in 2002 when I bought my first business, which was a hardware shop in Much Wenlock. Over the years my membership has been hugely important as a support network. Until my daughter Katie Smith joined me in the business four years ago, I worked on my own, and I've always felt that being a member of a trade organisation gives the kind of support that's a real comfort when you're a sole trader. I always felt that in a time of crisis - whether financial, legal or HR - I had someone on my side to offer advice and support."

Commenting on her new role, Ms Woulfe added: "I hope that I can in some way contribute to the work that is carried out by CHA/BIRA which supports the independent retailer. I've had a relatively broad span of experience in the industry, starting with my hardware shop, then moving into cookware. I'm as experienced on the shop floor as I am in internet retailing, so I would like to think that I can use this experience to help give independent retailers the kind of support that has given me comfort over the past 13 years."

She recently sold her high street shop in Shrewsbury in Shropshire to focus on its burgeoning online operation. The store has been sold to staff member Gill Gradwell, and has been renamed Cooking Kneads. Ms Woulfe is now concentrating on online operations at the Cooking Marvellous warehouse just outside Shrewsbury, which dispatches more than 1,000 orders a day.