Christopher Bailey, who has been CEO - in addition to being chief creative officer - since Angela Ahrendts left in 2014, has been appointed to the role of president.
"I am very excited that Marco Gobbetti is joining us as chief executive officer and as a partner to me," said Bailey in a statement. "Marco brings incredible experience and skills in luxury and retail with him that will be invaluable to us… On a personal level, I know that we are going to enjoy a wonderfully collaborative partnership that makes me very excited for our future at Burberry."
The news answers critics who have been vocal about the need to split Bailey's responsibilities, with many shareholders feeling that he needed support with the business operations, to allow him to concentrate wholly on the creative direction of the brand.
"Since taking on the combined role of chief executive and chief creative officer, Christopher Bailey has done an excellent job set against a backdrop of challenging market conditions," said chairman John Peace, who both Bailey and Gobbetti will be reporting to. "The review that he has led into our ways of working is the blueprint for the next phase of Burberry's evolution. In order to maximise our ability to successfully implement these plans, Christopher identified the need for a new chief executive for the business who could partner with him as we execute on the new strategies and I am excited to see what they will do together."
Gobbetti is slated to take up the role on an as-yet undisclosed date in 2017.
The news answers critics who have been vocal about the need to split Bailey's responsibilities, with many shareholders feeling that he needed support with the business operations, to allow him to concentrate wholly on the creative direction of the brand.
"Since taking on the combined role of chief executive and chief creative officer, Christopher Bailey has done an excellent job set against a backdrop of challenging market conditions," said chairman John Peace, who both Bailey and Gobbetti will be reporting to. "The review that he has led into our ways of working is the blueprint for the next phase of Burberry's evolution. In order to maximise our ability to successfully implement these plans, Christopher identified the need for a new chief executive for the business who could partner with him as we execute on the new strategies and I am excited to see what they will do together."
Gobbetti is slated to take up the role on an as-yet undisclosed date in 2017.
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