Burberry Shares Rise As New Creative Chief Announced

Burberry is one of only several FTSE 100 shares to rise in Wednesday business. As wider UK markets sell off the fashion brand has risen on news of a changing of the guard in the creative department.

At £17.40 per share Burberry was last trading 3.3% higher on the day. It remains 7% lower from the start of 2022.

Exit Tisci

On Wednesday Burberry announced that Riccardo Tisci — who has been chief creative officer for the past five years — would be leaving the company at the end of the month.

“Under his creative leadership, the company re-energised its brand image, introducing a new visual identity and reviving the Thomas Burberry Monogram,” the business said.

It added that under his guidance, Burberry has “modernised and elevated its product offer, attracting a younger, more diverse and fashion-forward community of customers, and aligned the customer experience to its luxury positioning.”

Tisci’s Spring Summer 2023 Collection presented in London this week was his last for the company, it announced.

Enter Lee

Within a few minutes of the announcement Burberry said that Daniel Lee will be taking over the reins as chief creative officer from 3 October.

Lee — who Burberry has described as “one of the most exciting British creative talents of his generation” — worked as creative director at Italian luxury brand Bottega Veneta.

He was previously director of ready-to-wear design at Celine, and has also had stints working at Maison Margiela, Balenciaga and Donna Karan.

Lee will oversee all collections at Burberry and will be based at the company’s London HQ. His first runway collection will be presented at London Fashion Week in February 2023.

Jonathan Akeroyd, Burberry chief executive, commented that “Daniel is an exceptional talent with a unique understanding of today’s luxury consumer and a strong record of commercial success, and his appointment reinforces the ambitions we have for Burberry.”

Changing Times

Tisci’s departure is the latest high-level decamping at Burberry. Less than a week ago chief operating and financial officer Julie Brown announced plans to leave at the close of the financial year on 1 April, 2023.

Brown will leave the business after six years to take a position outside the luxury industry, Burberry said.

The company’s latest financials in July showed like-for-like sales in its stores rise just 1% between April and June. Revenues were impacted by the introduction of fresh Covid-19-related lockdowns in China.