Another CEO exits stage at Matalan; King serves notice |
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Sat, 21 Jan 2006 08:00
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LONDON: Discount clothing and homewares retailer Matalan Plc. has lost its chief executive John King. He has served the mandatory notice on the company, but he has been persuaded to stay till the end of the year.
King had joined the beleaguered retailer in March 2003 from U.S. company Delta Galil and had led it through difficult times, including several profit warnings. Analysts, reacting to the development, said it is now likely that Matalan's owner and founder John Hargreaves will sell his family's controlling stake in the company.
The company said in a statement that King has agreed to continue till the end of December and will manage the business while a new chief executive is found.
"In recognition of this, the company has agreed to pay him an additional 12 months remuneration at the end of 2006."
This will mean that he will receive his basic salary plus benefits of 52,000 pounds. He got a basic salary of 420,000 pounds last year but earned 716,000 pounds including bonuses for the year to February 2005.
Matalan has a legacy of CEO exits. Angus Monro, who led the company through its stock market listing in 1998, left in 2001 over disagreements with Hargreaves. Paul Mason, who was King's predecessor and who was poached from Asda in 2002, was sacked in March 2003.
The company had given a trading update showing total sales falling 4.8 per cent and like-for-like sales falling 7.6 per cent in the 19 weeks ended 7 January 2006. King had said the company's board does not wish to give any profit guidance as the company is on course to make a pretax profit of a least 55 million pounds for the fiscal.
The company has engaged recruitment consultant Spencer Stuart to find a successor to King.
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