Health and fitness chain Cannons has announced that its chief executive, Harm Tegelaars, is to become non-executive deputy chair of the group, 25 years after he founded the company.

His role as chief executive will be taken by Arnu Misra, who joined Cannons as chief operating officer in March 2003, from retail company ASDA.

Cannons chair, John Donaldson, said he had been working with Tegelaars on the succession plan since he joined the company in February. The new roles will come into effect from 1 November.

“Our sector is going through considerable change,” said Tegelaars, who was last week named as European club operator of the year by the International Health, Racquet & Sportsclub Association (IHRSA).

“The time is right for me to take a different role in the company and allow new leadership to take over at this exciting time in the company’s development.”

The move will allow Tegelaars to spend more time on his role as deputy chair of the Fitness Industry Association (FIA).

Misra was originally recruited specifically because of his retail background and customer focus to help Cannons get back in touch with its members. He re-evaluated the company's blanket approach of treating all its members the same and created segments within its estate, each with its own operations director.

He also launched an initiative to identify, develop and train future general managers called Grow Your Own.