Ted Baker starts search for new chair

By

Nigel TAYLOR

Published
Dec 21, 2021

Ted Baker confirmed on Monday that it has launched a search for a new Chair following the unexpected death of previous Chair John barton earlier this month. It said that Helena Feltham will remain as Interim Chair while the search proceeds.

And it added that Andrew Jennings, who’d previously notified the company that he planned to step down from the board at the end of January next year, has agreed to stay on as a non-executive director until the 2022 Annual General Meeting at the latest. The last AGM was in July this year.

The company said this step “will provide continuity to the board and Andrew will also continue in his role as Chair of the Remuneration Committee”.

Meanwhile, Meg Lustman will take on the role of non-executive director responsible for employee engagement, currently held by Feltham, starting in late January.

Barton’s death was a blow to the retailer’s top team, not just on a personal basis, but because of the precarious situation in which it remains.

In November, the company had reported a return to growth and improved profitability, but it remained loss-making for its latest half-year. And it’s Q3 trading update showed that performance remains behind that of the pre-Covid period.

Barton’s involvement in the firm was crucial as it worked on its recovery. The highly respected businessman had previously been Chair of Next for 11 years and of budget airline easyJet.