Marco Gobbetti will leave Burberry after almost five years at the end of 2021.
What We Know:
- Burberry reported Gobbetti’s resignation on Monday. In their statement, the British company announced its CEO chose to begin working with Salvatore Ferragamo so he could move closer to his family in Italy.
- Gobbetti began working with Burberry in 2017. When he entered the company, he aimed to reposition the company “firmly in the luxury category.” He did so by using his experiences from being Givenchy and Celine’s CEO to make Burberry compete against brands like Gucci, Prada, and Louis Vuitton. He did this by recruiting Givenchy’s former artistic director Riccardo Tisci to re-design Burberry to appeal to a “younger and more diverse” consumer.
- Because of Gobbetti’s participation in the company, he gave Burberry a “breath of fresh air;” his leadership also contributed to the company’s shares increasing by 35% as of Friday. However, after the announcement, Burberry’s shares immediately plummeted; it became the biggest faller on the FTSE 100, going down 8%.
- Furthermore, Gobbetti did not finish his vision before resigning. According to Bernstein senior research analyst Luca Solca, Gobbetti’s goal of making Burberry compete with other big-name brands is still a “work in progress.” Additionally, “the magnitude of the issues at hand didn’t offer a chance for the runaway success” that many in the company expected. Solca added that investors might believe that he wouldn’t leave if Gobbetti felt confidence in the brand. Despite this criticism, Gobbetti believes it is time for him to step down; he cited that Burberry is “re-energized” and on “a path to strong growth.”
- Burberry expressed both disappointment and support for their CEO’s departure. Chairman Gerry Murphy said the board felt “naturally disappointed” by Gobbetti’s decision but understood why he wanted to leave. Murphy also expressed that the company feels determined to build on Burberry’s strong foundations to accelerate growth and deliver more value to shareholders.
In a separate statement, Salvatore Ferragamo declared Gobbetti would begin work with them as soon as he finishes his contractual obligations with Burberry. As mentioned before, Gobbetti will stay in the brand until the end of the year, thus giving the company enough time to find a successor for his position.
