British luxury fashion house Burberry announced on Monday the appointment of Joshua Schulman as its new chief executive officer. Schulman, 52, previously held positions at Michael Kors and Coach. He takes over from Jonathan Akeroyd, who has left the company by mutual agreement with the board. Burberry also warned of an operating loss in the first half of the year due to a decline in retail sales.
The unexpected news caused Burberry’s stock to drop over 11% as the company shared that full-year earnings were anticipated to be lower than expected. Additionally, the shareholder dividend payouts have been suspended. Chair Gerry Murphy expressed disappointment in the first-quarter performance, attributing it to challenges in the luxury market.
Akeroyd, who had joined Burberry after leading Gianni Versace, faced a series of departures during his tenure, including the company’s chief financial and operating officer and creative director. Daniel Lee replaced the outgoing creative director, Riccardo Tisci, in 2022.
Murphy praised Schulman as a capable leader with a successful history of developing global luxury brands and driving profitability. Schulman’s past experiences include boosting sales and overseeing brand transformations at Coach, serving as president of Bergdorf Goodman, and leading Jimmy Choo, a luxury shoemaker.
