New nomination for Fiona Druckenmiller.
Richemont closes the financial year with the highest sales in its history, close to EUR 20.000 million. Group sales and operating profit at an all-time high of € 19.953 million, sales up by 19% at actual exchange rates. Compared to the prior year, gross profit increased by 23% to € 13.716 million and the corresponding gross margin rose to 68.7% of sales. An increase in sales due to the boost of the Q4, when sales grew by 23% driven by the reopening in China and the removal of travel restrictions. A positive year for Richemont, which is planning the succession of its board.
Guillaume Pictet and Jean-Blaise Eckert, Non-executive Directors of the Company since 2010 and 2013, respectively, have indicated that they will step down from the Board at the end of the current financial year, on 31 March 2024, to enable a smooth handover of their committees’ responsibilities. Mr Pictet is a member of the Governance and Sustainability, Audit and Compensation Committees while Me Eckert is a member of the Audit Committee.
Clay Brendish and Maria Ramos have also indicated that they will step down from the Board at the end of the next financial year ending on 31 March 2025. Ms Ramos was appointed to the Board as a Non-executive Director in 2011 and is a member of the Compensation Committee. Mr Brendish was appointed to the Board as a Non-executive Director and the Lead Independent Director in 2017. He also serves as the Chairman of the Strategic Security and Compensation Committees and is a member of the Audit and Nominations Committees as well as the Governance and Sustainability Committee of which he served as the Chairman until February 2022.
The nomination of Fiona Druckenmiller for election to the Board of Directors
In addition, Richemont announced the nomination of Fiona Druckenmiller for election to the Board of Directors. Her appointment as a Non-executive Director is subject to the approval of shareholders at the 2023 AGM due on 6 September 2023.
Fiona Druckenmiller, an American national, is the founder of FD Gallery, a carefully curated New York-based boutique that offers pre-owned luxury items, predominantly vintage and contemporary jewellery, following nearly a decade of experience in the finance industry latterly as a portfolio manager at the Dreyfus Corporation. Ms Druckenmiller also co-founded the Druckenmiller Foundation with her husband in 1993 to support medical research, education, the alleviation of poverty, and various environmental causes. She also sits on the Board of Trustees of New York University and the NYU Langone Medical Center and is the Vice Chair of the Board of the American Museum of Natural History.
