# Debenhams boss could receive almost £150m bonus without vote if shares soar

By Aarin Chiekrie — 2025-11-27

Aarin Chiekrie, equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: “Boohoo delivered another disappointing set of results this morning, with its previously announced strategy change failing to have the desired effect so far.

“The rebrand as Debenhams Group was an attempt to tap into the heritage of the iconic British brand, but it’s done little to revive customer numbers and stem its falling sales, with first-half revenue down 23 per cent.

“Breathing life back into its younger-focused brands like PrettyLittleThing, boohoo and boohooMAN needs to be the focus, given that sales here are falling at an even faster pace, and the segment used to account for the majority of the group’s sales.

“With their strong social media following, they have the potential to be great assets, but execution remains lacking.

“Investment’s being focused on this area to shift the brands to a more nimble model, but only time will tell if it’s a success.

“First-half losses have slimmed thanks to a significant streamlining of the business, which has seen its fixed cost base almost halve in size.

“But the bottom line is that the fast-fashion group remains loss-making, and while CEO Dan Finley probably needs to be given more time to properly execute his strategy change, the near-term sales outlook doesn’t seem to be improving much.

“Boohoo is the right term to describe how its investors must be feeling now, with its shares down around 96 per cent over the last five years.

“Despite this, and in typical poor corporate governance fashion for boohoo, it has sidestepped its investors by announcing a new compensation scheme for the management team, without seeking shareholder approval.

“As a result, the pressure really is on management to deliver on its turnaround scheme.”

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