Next boss Simon Wolfson takes record £7.4m pay packet
Next boss Simon Wolfson took home a bumper £7.4m pay packet last year, as his best-ever pay day could be beaten by next year’s £9.3m – if the firm meets growth targets.
Wolfson’s total pay soared from £4.9m the year before, as he took £967k in basic pay and more than £6m in bonuses.
The clothes retailer is battling to keep prices down as it contends with surging manufacturing and energy costs caused by the Iran war.
The FTSE 100 firm said soaring costs caused by the blockage to the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping passage, could cause the company to hike prices by around one per cent by June.
These price rises could grow to double figures as soon as September if the war – and higher manufacturing costs – persist, Wolfson said last month.
Wolfson hopes for £9m pay this year
The retailer saw £75m in cost increases in the last year, with national insurance and wage rises, higher interest costs and an increased marketing spend adding to a £15m hit from the Middle East conflict.
Wolfson took home a £1.45m annual bonus and a £4.7m long-term bonus last year, among other perks including a company car and driver.
The chief executive’s salary is getting an even bigger boost this year, rising three per cent to £1m, while his maximum annual bonus is growing from 150 per cent to 200 per cent of his salary.
Wolfson’s long-term bonus will be judged based on Next’s share price performance but he could notch more than £9m in total pay.
Next’s remuneration committee said on Thursday it hiked pay for its directors because its returns to shareholders have outperformed rivals in recent years.
The firm said in its annual report: “Given this sustained outperformance, the committee does not consider the current levels of remuneration to be appropriately aligned with performance.”
These pay rises are driven by “the need to retain and motivate its high-quality management team, to support orderly succession planning, and where necessary, external recruitment”.
Next snaps up UK brands
Next has expanded aggressively in recent years, as high street shoe seller Russell & Bromley became its latest acquisition in January.
The retailer had snapped up vintage-inspired retailer Cath Kidston and clothes brand Joules in the year before.
Next boosted its profit guidance by £1.2bn for the next year, after it saw better-than-expected sales.
The retailer said its investment in new and newly-acquired brands is driving growth, and said it has been granted planning permission for a 1.2m sq foot warehouse in Elmsall, Wakefield, which could add £2.5bn to UK sales.
The retailer was founded in 1982 and operates around 700 stores, including about 500 in the UK.
Next’s share price fell more than one per cent on Thursday, to 3,270p, leaving the stock up 10 per cent in the past year.