20th Mar 2014 10:41
LONDON (Alliance News) - British luxury brand Mulberry Group PLC said Thursday that Chief Executive Officer Bruno Guillon is stepping down with immediate effect, after only two years at the helm.
The news of Guillon's departure comes less than two months after the luxury goods provider issued a profit warning, having reported a fall in sales as it was hit by the discounting seen in the UK sector over Christmas and by a challenging Korean wholesale market.
In a trading statement on January 29, Mulberry, which has been trying to turn itself into an international brand, said total retail sales fell 3% in the 17 weeks to January 25, even though its international retail sales were up 40% over the period. Total retail sales had been up 3% in the nine weeks to end-November, but then fell 7% in the following 8 weeks.
At the time, the company warned that it was now expecting total sales for the year to end-March to be substantially below market expectations, and broadly in line with the previous year, as a fall in wholesale sales offsets overall growth in retail sales.
The maker of women's bags, clothes and accessories, among other luxury items, said that Godfrey Davis, 64, who is currently non-executive chairman and was previously chief executive officer, will become executive chairman until a successor is found.
Guillon, 48, joined Mulberry in March 2012 from Hermes Sellier SARL, where he was managing director of French subsidiary Hermes France, a position he held for four years. He joined Hermes in 2001, having previously worked at LVMH and Nina Ricci, according to Mulberry.
Mulberry shares were trading 1.9% higher at 648.50 pence per share Thursday morning.
By Rowena Harris-Doughty; [email protected]; @rharrisdoughty
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