Struggling Asos faces more strife: Investors set to rebel on executive pay after stand-in boss lands £567,000
Asos bosses hoping to put this year’s troubles behind them face a daunting start to 2023.
The fast fashion outfit is heading for a bruising shareholder meeting on January 11 – with investors preparing to rebel.
Shareholder advisory service Pirc has savaged the online brand in a report, recommending investors reject or abstain on more than a third of the 15 motions.
Pay row: Asos is heading for a bruising shareholder meeting on January 11 – with investors preparing to rebel
One concern is last year’s pay report, which saw stand-in chief executive Mat Dunn’s salary hit £567,000.
The adviser said payouts ‘raised concerns for potential excessiveness’.
Its pay policy for the coming year also drew scorn, with Pirc describing chief executive Jose Ramos’s total potential payout, which could hit £4.2m, as ‘excessive’.
Another shareholder adviser, ISS, recommended investors back the firm’s pay policy, but nonetheless said it ‘raises concerns’.
Pirc also took aim at chairman Jorgen Lindemann, who has overseen moves on sustainability, and suggested shareholders should abstain on Lindemann’s re-election.
Luke Hildyard, of the High Pay Centre, said Asos’s board has a ‘highly inflated view’ of top bosses’ importance.
Asos said it is ‘not unusual’ for shareholder advisers to take differing views on resolutions. A spokesman said its pay policies encourage strong performance from bosses.
The firm has been battered by the cost of living crisis and a backlash against fast fashion.