Cupid announces Phil Gripton as new chief executive
Online dating firm Cupid has announced a new chief executive.
The current boss of the company, Bill Dobbie, is stepping down and will be replaced by Phil Gripton from 1 December.
Mr Gripton has been managing director of the company's Dating Services division for the past year and has overseen the sell-off of the company's "casual" sites.
Mr Dobbie is to remain on the board as a non-executive director.
The "casual dating" sites including Benaughty.com and Flirt.com were sold earlier this year for £45m.
At the time, Edinburgh-based Cupid said it wanted to focus on its niche and mainstream sites.
The company has also been accused of creating user profiles on its websites to entice new customers to sign up.
An independent report did not find any evidence of this, but the report by auditors KPMG said Cupid's staff were not clearly identified, which led to confusion for customers.
Cupid said at the time it planned further management changes this year.
Before his time at Cupid, Mr Gripton was managing director of the digital marketing company bigmouthmedia.
He has also held senior leadership roles with technology businesses including Cable & Wireless, Energis, Parametric Technology Corporation and ICL Fujitsu.
Mr Gripton said: "This is a pivotal time for Cupid, and I am very much looking forward to continuing my work with the Board to drive the business forward, implement new initiatives and deliver on the strategy that is in place.
"Although Cupid's Brands have grown well I believe there is much more potential for them going forward. I'm confident our teams can deliver the best user experience for our global customers and ultimately create value for our shareholders."
Cupid chairman George Elliot said: "We are very pleased to have appointed Phil as CEO and believe that he is in a strong position to drive the business forward using his extensive and complementary skills and experiences to ensure Cupid delivers on its strategy."