Burberry ousts CEO amid profit warning
The Americas and Asia Pacific regions saw a 23% drop in sales, while Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) reported a 16% fall
Burberry has announced that it has replaced its CEO Jonathan Akeroyd effective immediately after its Q1 sales dropped by a fifth.
The fashion house has announced the appointment of former Michel Kors boss Joshua Schulman to replace Akeroyd.
Burberry stated that Schulman joins the business with a track record of driving transformative growth and value creation as CEO of global luxury, fashion, and retail businesses.
The appointment comes following what the company branded a “disappointing” first quarter with sales falling 21% to £458m in the 13 weeks ended 29 June.
The Americas and Asia Pacific regions saw a 23% drop in sales, while Europe, the Middle East, India and Africa (EMEIA) reported a 16% fall.
Gerry Murphy, Burberry chair, said: “Our Q1 FY25 performance is disappointing. We moved quickly with our creative transition in a luxury market that is proving more challenging than expected. The weakness we highlighted coming into FY25 has deepened and if the current trend persists through our Q2, we expect to report an operating loss for our first half.
“In light of current trading, we have decided to suspend dividend payments in respect of FY25. We are taking decisive action to rebalance our offer to be more familiar to Burberry’s core customers whilst delivering relevant newness.”
He added: “We expect the actions we are taking, including cost savings, to start to deliver an improvement in our second half and to strengthen our competitive position and underpin long-term growth.”
