Abbeycrest's first independent chief executive has left the Leeds-based jewellery maker with "immediate effect" after four years at the helm.

Phil Walker, who joined Abbeycrest in 2002 as finance director before becoming group chief executive in March 2002, resigned today "to pursue other business interests with immediate effect".

The chief executive role will now be split between Michael Lever, the group executive chairman and David Chapman, the group finance director.

Mr Lever, a former dentist, established Abbeycrest in 1979 to design, assemble and distribute jewellery to large retail outlets. Until Mr Walker was promoted in March 2004, Mr Lever had been both chairman and chief executive at Abbeycrest for 25 years.

Abbeycrest has been dogged by a series of problems, both financial and operational, for a number of years.

When Mr Walker first joined Abbeycrest, it had issued a profits warning due to a number of problems including huge stock overhang which, under the previous finance director, was found to total £5 million.

However, a review by Mr Walker found that the company actually had £8 million of old stock on its books. The company suspended its interim dividend.

Most recently, Abbeycrest was saved from administration in June 2006, when it raised £3.3 million through a sale and leaseback of its property.

Burdale Financial, Abbeycrest's bankers, also provided debt refinancing package worth £33 million to help bail the company out in the face of rising gold prices and the UK jewellery market which it described as "extremely challenging".

Shares in Abbeycrest were unchanged at 19.5p by mid-morning trading.

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