THE £6m paycut

After falling sales and a share price plunge, Burberry boss takes a hit

BURBERRY chief executive Christopher Bailey saw £6m wiped off his pay package as the fashion firm’s sales and shares plunged. Bailey ( pictured with model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley) suffered one of the biggest pay cuts ever seen at a FTSE 100 firm – down 75pc – after a dire year in which profits fell 10pc and the shares sank 35pc. The 45-yearold, who has the dual role of chief creative officer and overall boss, has been one of the best paid executives in the City.

His vast pay deal was the target of investors and 52.7pc of shareholders voted it down in 2014.

But the latest annual report published yesterday revealed his total pay fell to £1.9m for 2015 from £7.9m. A failure to meet profit targets meant Bailey lost out on his bonus and long-term incentive plan.

In the end he received his £1.1m salary, £464,000 in benefits and £ 330,000 in pension contributions.

His £7.9m for the previous year comprised a salary of £1m – where he was chief executive for 11 months – an allowance of £424,000 and a host of extra rewards. There was £303,000 in pension payments, an annual bonus of £1.8m and £4.4m from a long-term incentive plan.

In 2013 the company said it would hand Bailey one million free shares worth around £15m after a rival firm tried to poach him and he agreed to stay to do his job. The first slice of those free shares were set to vest next month and Bailey was due an estimated £2.2m.

However, he has requested these should be deferred because of the recent problems suffered by the business. Last month he said a fifth of the fashion lines are to be axed, along with jobs and £100m of costs as he tries to revive the troubled brand.

While the move to defer the share award is being billed as a gesture of restraint given the disappointing performance, it also serves to give Bailey the benefit of 12 months extra time to improve the share price. His controversial dual role and lack of experience has been a concern for some sharehold- ers. He is one of the few FTSE 100 bosses who refuses to answer questions from journalists at financial updates. The shares rose 0.84pc or 9p to 1079p.