How M&S boss made £1.6m as profits fell 64pc

THE boss of Marks & Spencer was paid far less than his predecessor in his first year in charge – but still took home £1.6m.

Steve Rowe, who was promoted to chief executive in April 2016, was handed a £599,000 bonus on top of his £810,000 salary and £234,000 in pensions and benefits.

This was far less than the £2m paid to Marc Bolland in his last year in the role, who also received a higher basic salary of £975,000.

Executive pay at M&S has been on the slide in recent years as the company struggles in the face of stiff competition on the High Street and online.

In his first year in charge, Bolland was paid £5.9m, while his predecessor Stuart Rose took home £4.3m in his final year as boss.

Rowe’s £1.6m pay package came in a year that profits plunged by 64pc and the High Street chain slashed hundreds of jobs and announced store closures, partly due to a drastic overhaul which included lowering prices, holding fewer sales and expanding its food halls.

Rowe, 49, has also said he will close 53 stores in loss-making countries, including China and France.

But the father of two’s main focus is on womenswear, which has been struggling for years. He has decided to ditch poor- selling ranges Indigo, Collezione and North Coast, while plumping up the lucrative lingerie department. He has reduced prices on 2,400 clothing and home lines, while cutting back on promotions to put an end to overpriced or heavily discounted products.

However the moves have delivered a blow to the bottom line. Profit fell from £488.8m to £176.4m on sales of £10.6bn. Revenue in clothing and home was down 2.8pc to £3.8bn.

Helen Weir, chief financial officer, said: ‘Although we are confident these actions are the right ones to recover and grow M&S, they have not come without significant cost.’

The chain recently poached the chief executive of Halfords – Jill McDonald – as managing direc- tor for clothing, home and beauty to lead the turnaround in those departments. Elsewhere, M&S has shaken up staff pay by scrapping extra money for working on Sundays and is changing pension payments, while bosses have declined a 2pc pay rise for the second year running – a measure revealed in the annual report released yesterday. Shares fell 0.6pc, or 2.1p, to 366.7p.