As widely expected, the Chief Executive of Debenhams stepped down at the end of last week just days after the ailing department store chain was taken over by its lenders.
Sergio Bucher, who is being handed a £700,000 payoff as part of his contract, said it was “time to move on, knowing the company is in good hands with a plan that will deliver a sustainable future”.
Terry Duddy, the retailer’s non-executive chairman, will now oversee the running of the business as interim Executive Chairman whilst it searches for a new CEO. He said: “Debenhams now has a clear path towards a viable and sustainable future and we have Sergio and his team to thank for that.”
Bucher joined Debenhams from Amazon in late 2016 and subsequently implemented his ‘Redesigned’ strategy aimed at overhauling stores and reinvigorating the product offering. However, the plan has yet to result in a significant upturn in trading with the retailer issuing three profit warnings in 2018 alone.
The group of lenders that now owns Debenhams have provided the retailer with £200m in fresh funding to pursue a potentially more aggressive turnaround plan.
Debenhams said that Bucher’s departure “will allow new leadership to carry through the restructuring and turnaround of the business.”
A Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) involving the closure of dozens of stores and loss of thousands of jobs is expected to be launched in the coming weeks. Debenhams has already outlined that it wants to close around 50 of its 165 outlets and renegotiate rents with landlords to put the business on a more sustainable financial footing.
