Chief's Golden Handshake

FORMER Body Shop chief Patrick Gournay left the Littlehampton-based green cosmetics business with a £769,000 pay-off, in spite of profits slumping during his time as chief executive.
By The Newsroom
Published 9th May 2002, 11:07 BST
Updated 8th Jun 2018, 00:58 BST

Details of Mr Gournay's golden handshake were revealed in the company's latest annual results, which showed another dip in both profits and sales.

During his three-and-a-half year stint as Body Shop chief executive, profits fell from 38m to the 11.6m just announced, in spite of a further 500 shops opening. The share price tumbled from 120p to around 95p over the same period.

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One financial journalist said of Mr Gournay's leaving package: "Not for some time has there been such a perfect example of reward for failure."

Body Shop finance director Alistair Murray stressed that the company was obliged to pay Mr Gournay two years' salary under the terms of his contract.

Founder Anita Roddick and her husband Gordon, who stepped down as co-chairmen in February, retain a substantial holding in the company and continue as non-executive directors.

Like other shareholders, they have been hit as the company's stock market value fell, but at least Mrs Roddick has the consolation of a two-year consultancy paying 195,000 for 80 days per year.

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New chairman Adrian Bellamy said the 2002 financial results were "disappointing".

He added: "Despite the fundamental changes made over recent years, The Body Shop is still a long way from achieving its potential."

Redundancies during the past year had cost the company 3.7m and the failure of an up-market, organic offshoot, Botanicus, had resulted in a 4.4m write-off.