Weeks-Long Lace Inquiry Continues

Lowe’s decision to suspend London CEO Garry Lace last week came weeks after the shop and parent Interpublic Group began probing allegations that Lace had a dialogue with Frank Lowe last year about the agency’s Tesco business, sources said. As such, the investigation may end sooner than the end of March—the time frame the agency gave Friday in a brief, vague statement about “certain matters that have come to the company’s attention.”

While it’s possible Lace could return, sources said it was unlikely, since he appeared to have lost the confidence of his superiors, including IPG.