Debenhams boss lands £1.3m pay

DEBENHAMS paid its chief executive £1.3m for his first year in the job despite sinking profits and worries about tough trading over Christmas.

The department store chain awarded Sergio Bucher, 52, almost £900,000, plus a payment of £455,184 to compensate him for wages he missed out on with his previous employer, Amazon Fashion Europe.

Bucher’s pay is almost double that of his predecessor Michael Sharp, whose 2016 package totalled £690,530.

In October, the firm warned it was facing a tough Christmas as profits plunged 44pc in the year to September 2, dropping to £59m from £105.9m during the previous 12 months.

Debenhams said its investment in digital helped to raise mobile sales by 57pc in 2017.