Boohoo has ditched plans to pay top executives bonuses worth £1m after receiving a backlash from shareholders.
The about face follows reports over the weekend that “several” investors planned to vote against the fashion retailer’s incentive plan that would award co-founders Mahmud Kamani and Carol Kane (pictured), and chief executive John Lyttle bonuses of £1m, despite the business racking up almost £160m in losses.
Boohoo said in its annual report that while none of the executives were eligible for bonuses after financial targets were missed, its remuneration committee agreed to the payouts as it felt “the formulaic outcome is not an accurate reflection of the excellent work carried out during the year”.
Kamani, Kane, and Lyttle were set to recieve £300,000 in cash as well as £700,000 in company shares.
However, Boohoo has now said it has “engaged with certain shareholders [and] decided not to implement the incentive plan at this time.”
“The executive directors have also opted to waive their entire bonus entitlement for the financial year ended 29 February 2024,” it said.
The retailer revealed earlier this month that its losses had swelled to £159.9m, up from £90.7m, as it encountered “difficult market conditions” caused by high levels of inflation and weakened consumer demand.
Sales fell 17% to £1.46bn in the year to February 29, which it said reflected its increased focus on profitability alongside challenging market conditions.
