The boss of Burberry, Joshua Schulman, could rake in up to £12.2m under a new bonus scheme, because apparently saving the planet is less important than saving the balance sheet. The luxury brand's annual report also reveals it has pushed back its carbon neutrality deadline by a decade to 2050, citing a "greater understanding" of emissions. That's one way to describe it.
Schulman, hired in July 2024 from Coach to revive Burberry, was paid £4m in the year to March, up from £2.5m for his first nine months. His package included £1.2m basic pay, a £2.3m cash bonus, and £299,000 in relocation assistance after moving from New York. Meanwhile, the company made pre-tax profits of £49m, compared with a loss of £66m the year before, thanks to cost cuts and the Burberry Forward campaign winning back Chinese and North American shoppers.
But the company has also joined Unilever and BP in scaling back climate ambitions. The previous CEO pledged net positive impact by 2040 and a 46% reduction in indirect emissions by 2030. Now? 2050. The report calls this a "pragmatic response" to external factors, while still seeing climate change as a "principal risk." Sure, let's go with that.
Burberry sales stayed flat at £2.4bn as the brand focused on core items like trench coats and scarves. Finance director Kate Ferry saw her pay more than double to £2.5m, with potential to hit £5.6m if Burberry's share price jumps 50%. From July, Schulman's basic pay rises 3% to £1.24m, and he could earn a new long-term share bonus worth up to 300% of salary if he boosts annual revenues to £3.1bn by 2029.
The report says Schulman's target pay is £6.4m, which could rise to £12.2m in three years if he hits "stretching performance targets" and the share price increases by 50%. Chair of the remuneration committee, Danuta Gray, says the scheme is "appropriately incentivising" and aims to retain Schulman by improving his pay relative to luxury peers. Because nothing says "reasonable" like a potential £12.2m payday while the planet waits another decade.