LONDON – Burberry’s share price was on the rise on Wednesday after new CEO Jonathan Akeroyd revealed his first big hire: former Bottega Veneta designer Daniel Lee as chief creative officer.
Burberry’s shares on the London Stock Exchange closed up 3.18% to 17.38 pounds. Overall, the FTSE 100 fell 1.1% to 6,910.6 in morning trading but ultimately closed up 0.3% in a market rattled by Prime Minister Liz Truss’ mini-budget, the plummeting pound and fears of spiraling inflation.
Analysts were positive, too, with Luca Solca of Bernstein describing Lee as an “appropriate choice, as he has demonstrated the ability to create a highly successful new chapter for Bottega Veneta.”
Solca said that handbags and shoes “are the two potentially most promising developments for Burberry. So far, the British brand has struggled to make its mark in these categories and create high profile iconic products. Daniel could open this opportunity.”
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Lee, who made an abrupt departure from the Kering-owned Bottega Veneta late last year shortly after the brand’s spring 2022 runway show in Detroit, Michigan, helped to revive the Italian brand, turning it into a hot ticket and trend-setting label.
He injected a new and youthful spirit to the collections, and his zeitgeist-y designs were the talk of social media, and the wider fashion industry. He was widely tipped to take over the top creative job at Burberry, taking over from Riccardo Tisci, who has left the brand just days after showing his spring 2023 collection.
Lee delivered top-selling accessories, including the Pouch bag, the Cassette bag and the Lido sandals, and built momentum for Bottega with disruptive strategies such as erasing its Instagram account and staging traveling fashion shows in locations including London, Berlin and Detroit.
At the 2019 Fashion Awards in London, Lee – who had joined Bottega Veneta a year earlier – took home a record four prizes, including designer of the year and brand of the year. He was previously director of ready-to-wear design at Celine, which he joined in 2012, and he has also worked at Maison Margiela, Balenciaga and Donna Karan.
On Wednesday, following Burberry’s announcement, RBC wrote that Lee is “widely credited for setting the foundations and early success at Bottega Veneta in its recent turnaround endeavors, however [he] left the brand in November 2021 for undisclosed reasons after three years at the brand.”
The bank added that since Burberry’s offer is 50% replenishment and 50% seasonal stock, “we do not expect a large product reset and expect a fairly orderly transition given the timing.”
Lee will join Burberry on Oct. 3. He will be based at the company’s headquarters in London and report to Akeroyd. Lee’s debut collection will be shown during London Fashion Week in February 2023.
RBC said that, overall, it views the announcement as positive, “as some investors believe Burberry requires a fresh perspective from a creative and design perspective, despite the material improvements in recent years.”
Lee’s appointment comes amid a backrop of sweeping changes at Burberry, with Akeroyd set to present his strategic vision for the business at the company’s interim results meeting on Nov. 11.
As reported, Julie Brown, Burberry’s well-respected chief financial officer and chief operating officer, confirmed last week she was leaving the business and Burberry said a search for her successor is underway. Next year Brown will join the British pharma giant GSK as CFO, part of a female management team.
This story was reported by WWD and originally appeared on WWD.com.
