Burberry CEO Gobbetti to step down

Burberry said on Monday that chief executive officer Marco Gobbetti will step down at the end of the year to take up another opportunity that will allow him to return to Italy and be closer to his family, sending shares in the luxury fashion brand tumbling.

Italy's Salvatore Ferragamo said in a statement that Gobbetti will be its new general manager and CEO.

Burberry will now begin the search for a successor and said that Gobbetti, who was in the role for nearly five years, will remain with the company until the end of the calendar year. In that time, he will work with chairman Gerry Murphy to provide full support to the executive leadership team on an orderly transition.

Murphy said: "I would like to thank Marco for his partnership and the immense contribution he has made to Burberry. He has had a transformative impact and established a clearly-defined purpose and strategy, an outstanding team and strong brand momentum.

"The board and I are naturally disappointed by Marco's decision but we understand and fully respect his desire to return to Italy after nearly 20 years abroad. With the execution of our strategy on track and our outlook unchanged, we are determined to build on Burberry's strong foundations to accelerate growth and deliver further value for our shareholders."

At 1155 BST, the shares were down 7.9% at 2,072p.

IG market analyst Joshua Mahony said: "With the stock having only just recovered from its 2020 slump, investors will have the uncertainty of a new leader potentially shifting the strategy despite recent successes under Gobbetti."