Ferragamo CEO Gobbetti's pay backed by shareholders despite criticism

Salvatore Ferragamo shareholders gave the green light to its proposed remuneration policy, which gives the luxury goods group's CEO a bumper pay package, despite a recommendation from the world's top two proxy advisers to vote against it.

Glass Lewis and Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) suggested a vote against both the remuneration policy and part of the remuneration report.

Ferragamo is led by Marco Gobbetti, the former head of British fashion group Burberry, who took over as CEO at the beginning of 2022. Gobbetti last year got almost 12 million euros ($13.2 million), including the first part of a welcome bonus of 8.9 million euros to be paid in threes tranches over 24 months, making him one of the highest paid executives in Italy.

For 2023, Gobbetti is expected to get an unchanged fixed remuneration of 2.3 million euros, plus a short-term incentive plan with a target payment of 3 million euros. He is also entitled to a plan that if targets are met could deliver him share units up to a value of 2.5 million euros.

ISS said a in a report published earlier this month that the proposed remuneration policy continued to raise significant concern. The adviser said the company made excessive one-off payments and the resulting level of pay was excessive relative to peers and company performance.

A large majority of shareholders at the company's shareholder meeting voted in favour of the proposed remuneration policy. The luxury group is controlled by the Ferragamo's family holding with a 54.3% stake, based on the company's website.

The COVID pandemic hit just as the company was striving to rejuvenate its historic brand, famous for the shoes worn by Hollywood stars such as Audrey Hepburn. Last year, Gobbetti promised a quick turnaround for the Italian luxury group, vowing to increase investments, revamp stores and attract younger customers to double revenues to almost 2.3 billion euros by 2026.

Sales at Ferragamo declined by 6.5% at constant exchange rates in the first quarter hit by a slowdown in the U.S. market. Analysts said it was too early to judge efforts to revive the brand under Gobbetti and new designer Maximilian Davis.