The reunion is only the beginning of the challenge for the founders of Superdry | Business

WWhen Julian Dunkerton, co-founder of Superdry, took a seat Tuesday in a City auditorium, he did not suspect that he had managed one of the most daring moves of boardrooms in recent times.

Accompanied by an entourage consisting of his wife – fashion designer Jade Holland Cooper – and Superdry creator, James Holder, the multimillionaire was anxiously awaiting the outcome of a shareholder vote which, on when the time came, would plunge it back into the base of fashion. he started 16 years ago.

"We knew it was very tight but we did not know the outcome until Peter Bamford [the chairman] announced the result of the proxy vote at the beginning of the meeting, "said Peter Williams, a veteran of the fashion industry loving designer brands and labels, who, after the dramatic events of last week, will be the new president of Superdry, charged with rebuilding a board of directors who resigned en mbade after the shareholders have closely supported his appointments and those of Dunkerton.

In the end, the stubborn determination that helped Dunkerton build Superdry paid off. At the 11th hour, his advisers won the crucial votes of the city's investors, Schroders and Investec, and the Spanish bank BBVA. "We were knocking on doors and talking to people, and I do not think management has done it," Dunkerton said. "They did not talk about product: they talked about my disruption. At the end, [investors] have been influenced by logic. "

On Friday night, Dunkerton said he was already working hard to turn things around. "I loved every second. I had the warmest welcome and the most wonderful three days. I had the impression of coming home. I know what I am doing and I know that clear steps must be taken to put the company in the right direction. That's what I do in life. "

What was called Project Lion started last October, after Superdry released the first of three profit warnings. Dunkerton, who had departed the previous March, apparently to build a leisure empire including cideries, pubs and hotels in his native Gloucestershire, announced in a Sunday newspaper that Superdry was on the "completely wrong way".

By the beginning of the year 2018, the company, best known for its brightly colored hooded sweatshirts and its Japanese effigy t-shirts, had been strong. The stock price had exceeded £ 20, valuing the company at £ 1.6m and Dunkerton's personal stake at £ 300m. But that turned out to be the mark of high waters.

The stock price had started to fall before Dunkerton left, but between March and October he had more than halved, taking away much of his wealth. On Christmas Eve, Dunkerton was unleashed after two other profit warnings erased an additional 40% of the stock.

The war of words between Dunkerton and the company has intensified in the weeks leading up to the vote, gaining momentum when the business man launched the site Web "Save Superdry" to present its alternative strategy.

The former head of Vodafone, Bamford, and the general manager, Euan Sutherland, formerly of B & Q and Co-op, maintained a united front until the end. They argued that Dunkerton was an important part of the problem and that the company, with sales reaching £ 1 billion, was acting appropriately by turning into a "global lifestyle brand", selling more online, by addressing new areas such as sports and children's clothing. and reduce costs by 50 million pounds with 200 job losses.

After the intense eloquent match that preceded the match, the shareholders' meeting, in an anonymous room at Investec City's offices, was a kind of wet fluff.

The council arrived in silence. Only Bamford – who knew then that everything was over – spoke and even then, without a microphone was hard to hear. He did not attempt to defend the company in ruins and, with a heroic level of underestimation, hinted that it was "not fruitful" to move on. The meeting was over in 30 minutes.

The real action would occur in the hours that followed. During a series of hectic meetings, it became apparent that the board as a whole was intent on keeping its promise to quit. "Euan's departure was obvious, but not that of the non-managers," said Williams. "They did not need to go there and we tried to convince them to stay at least until the AGM, in five months."

An urgent one – hour meeting of the board of directors was held at which Sutherland and Chief Financial Officer Ed Barker did not attend. Bamford took the presidency, then resigned and left. When Dennis Millard, Superdry's senior non-executive director, declined to sit as president, Williams intervened.

By the time the dust settles, Williams, 65 – who is no stranger to corporate turmoil after stays at Selfridges, the late JJB Sports, Asos and Boohoo – is trying to play the role of peacemaker. "I just want to calm everyone down. If you go back to the events of the day, it could have gone one way or the other. After all the heat and drama, I think everyone is ready to calm down and continue the work. Most people have wages to earn and mortgages to pay. "

The duo needed a simple majority of votes cast to win. They both won 51.15% of the vote, giving them the narrowest victory. "The vote being so close is another reason why the whole council should not go away," Williams said. "The meeting room is a smart place and it is important that other opinions are expressed there."

What are we doing now? The brand is going through a difficult time in the midst of changing buying habits that is hitting fashion retailers hard. Its sales are down and, according to Sutherland, it was expected to earn between 55 and 70 million pounds this year, against 97 million in 2018.

The gap between the founders and Superdry board members was obvious to the badysts at the meeting, even in the way they were dressed. Dunkerton was in Superdry's head to the feet, his wrist was adorned with quality woven bracelets, while Holder was dressed in a black leather jacket and skinny jeans. The filmmakers, however, seemed to have taken their benchmarks from Jeremy Clarkson's chic-casual style.

"In a creative industry, it has to happen in your veins," said Dunkerton, gesturing toward the space where the board sat. "You can look up there and see that it's not working."

He said that Superdry's problems were due to the fact that he had become a retailer rather than a "brand", which was a "desperate place". To restore his fashion side, he plans to rely on Holder's clothing business, which claims to be able to offer a wave of new products before the key Christmas trading season. The job cuts are reconsidered. "I do not want to get into unnecessary cost reductions," said Dunkerton. "I am a natural builder, not a cutter."

The owner, who owns 10% of the company, will be rehired. "I do not want to retire and sit on a yacht," he said. "We are ragpickers. We love product and people and constant reinvention. "

Dunkerton said the website's performance could be improved in three to four months, but it would take two years to transform the ship as a whole: "You have to know exactly where you are going. But if you make a brilliant product, people will buy it.

Some wonder if Superdry will not find it difficult to grow, like other once-casual brands such as Abercrombie & Fitch and Jack Wills. The Millennials who bought Superdry are now parents, while the power of social media is preventing marketers from mastering Generation Z.

Owner says that it does not matter if seniors buy clothes. "The more fathers there are, the better," he joked before adding, "People wear Superdry on yachts in San Tropez and Cheltenham. It has a global appeal. "

Staff at Superdry's headquarters in Cheltenham welcomed Dunkerton's speech of encouragement on Wednesday. But the stock price suggests that investors are not yet convinced. Just before Tuesday's vote, it started at 577p, registering an additional drop, closing Friday at 450p, lower than the 2010 floating price.

Sutherland will receive a big profit – up to a year's salary, or £ 730,000. But investors may not be so lucky. If previous cost reduction plans are not imposed, there will probably be at least another big profit warning.

Some insiders always worry about what the future holds for them. "Julian thinks he has all the answers," said one of them. "For the sake of Superdry, I hope that he will be able to get out of it."

The opposite of edgy

Quilted jackets, sliders, water bottles made of stainless steel: the current offer of Superdry should have placed the brand in the perfect position to ride the boom of the athleisure.

Yet, despite his efforts to turn away from his clbadic jackets and hoodies, Superdry has retained a certain clbady student, loved sports teams academics and recently badociated with the culture of boys. (It may not help that many of their men's sweatpants are nicknamed "naked lad joggers".)

Its prominent brand image – once vital to its appeal – risks playing against it, highlighting the omnipresence of the brand and making it a target for counterfeiters. In the world of fast fashion, if everyone wears Superdry, it will not be long before anyone else is.

Superdry is the opposite of edgy – it remains too chic to tap into normcore tendencies. With regard to the stores, the brand seems to be diverted from luxury destinations to extend into the endangered alleys and the airport shopping malls – the house of the city. boredom-purchase.

It remains to be seen if Dunkerton can reverse the situation. But giving up the "Japanese inspired" logo – a red flag for millennials in search of authenticity – could be a good starting point.
Leah Harper