Ted Baker designates an insider as the boss after the founder leaves the row "hugging"

REUTERS: British fashion retailer Ted Baker on Thursday named a veteran of the company, also introducing workplace standards changes, which aimed to silence allegations of misconduct against outgoing founder and CEO, Ray Kelvin.

Ted Baker stated that Lindsay Page, who was CFO in 1997, would badume the role of CEO with immediate effect.

Kelvin, who was CEO since the company's launch in 1988, resigned last month after claiming to have presided over a culture of "hugging".

The company stated that an independent group had terminated its investigation into Kelvin's allegations and recommended changes to the workplace culture, including a review of human resources procedures and a whistleblower hotline. , that she would put in place.

He stated that he would not comment on the complaints against Kelvin, who denied all allegations of misconduct.

It remains the largest shareholder of the company with just under 35%, according to data from Refinitiv Eikon.

The action of Ted Baker dropped by 43% in 2018 and, last month, she announced a first decline in her annual profit since the 2008 financial crisis, highlighting the harsh conditions on the main streets of Britain .

His shares rose 2.2% to 1,521 pence after Thursday's statement.

"The appointment of Lindsay Page as CEO and the conclusion of the FSS investigation should now draw a line in the sand in what has been an unfortunate process," Liberum badysts said.

"His (Page) nomination has an imminent meaning and represents the easiest transition to a person with an incredibly long pedigree at Ted Baker."

Learning Lessons

Retailers are facing a perfect storm of rising costs, slowing growth and uncertainty sparked by England's chaotic departure from the European Union.

Ted Baker, who opened his first store in Glasgow in 1988 and now has more than 500 outlets and dealerships around the world, has announced strong sales for Christmas, with the original details of his suits, shirts and dresses allowing the company to stand out from the competition.

"Questions have been raised about the loss of creativity that Kelvin has now lost," said Laith Khalaf, senior badyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, a brokerage firm.

"But Ted Baker is a company worth more than half a billion pounds – it does not depend solely on the talent of one man."

He stated that he has renewed training for all employees on human resources policies and procedures and on acceptable workplace conduct.

The company will also maintain an independent and confidential whistleblower hotline and improve the monitoring of people and cultural issues at the board level.

"We are determined to learn from this process and, to move forward, to create a better environment for all employees, where they always feel respected and valued," said Executive Chairman David Bernstein .

(Report by Noor Zainab Hussain in Bengaluru, edited by Arun Koyyur and John Stonestreet)