Clinton Cards founder Don Lewin is to be replaced as chief executive by Darcy Willson-Rymer, managing director of Starbucks in the UK and Ireland.

Clinton Cards has emerged as another casualty of the severe winter weather after revealing today that its profits will be significantly short of City hopes.

Greetings card firm Clinton Cards said it had grown profits after benefiting from better trading at its Birthdays business.

Clinton Cards agreed its biggest acquisition today, with a £46.4m (€66.1m) takeover of the Birthdays chain.