Burberry hires Daniel Lee to be chief creative officer
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Burberry’s boardroom makeover continues as luxury fashion brand hires Daniel Lee as chief creative officer
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Burberry has hired Daniel Lee as chief creative officer as the British fashion house reshuffle continues.
The Bradford-born 36-year-old, who has garnered much praise from Italian fashion house Bottega Veneta, will replace creative head Riccardo Tisci.
Lee praised Burberry as a ‘legendary luxury brand’ and London as ‘a city championing groundbreaking creativity’.
Good fit: Daniel Lee (pictured with Rosie Huntington-Whiteley) joins Burberry as chief creative officer
His return to British fashion takes him back to Yorkshire as Burberry’s iconic Heritage trench coat is handcrafted in Castleford, just 25 miles from Bradford.
Tisci’s predecessor Christopher Bailey is also a Yorkshireman, hailing from nearby Halifax.
Tisci, who held the role for nearly five years, was hired by former Burberry boss and compatriot Marco Gobbetti, who left last year.
Questions about Tisci’s future have swirled since Gobbetti’s departure amid rumors that the new boss, Jonathan Akeroyd, who previously led British brand Alexander McQueen and Italian group Versace, is plotting a change of course.
Tisci’s swan song at Burberry came on Monday as the 166-year-old company’s spring/summer 2023 collection was unveiled at London Fashion Week, with models including Naomi Campbell donning his latest outfits.
Rogerio Fujimori, an analyst at real estate agency Stifel, said Lee’s appointment should be seen as a “long-term positive,” but acknowledged that a change of creative director “will cause some degree of disruption for luxury brands.”
He said: ‘[Tisci’s] collections failed to create the strong buzz seen with the most popular luxury brands over the past five years. It’s understandable that Burberry is taking someone for a new chapter.’
Born a mechanic father and an office worker mother, Lee graduated from Central Saint Martins College in London before working for designers such as DKNY and the Parisian brand Celine.
In 2018, he was named creative director of Bottega Veneta and was credited with making it a hot brand by reinventing his classic woven leather accessories into unusual handbags and shoes. Famous fans included pop star Rihanna.
Recast: Tisci’s swan song at Burberry came on Monday as the company’s Spring/Summer 2023 collection was unveiled at London Fashion Week
But Lee stunned the industry by abruptly leaving in November, though the company said it was a “joint decision” to end the partnership.
His arrival at Burberry comes amid a wider reshuffle. Aside from bringing in Akeroyd in April, Chief Operating and Financial Officer Julie Brown will join drug giant GlaxoSmithKline and leave in April.
The shake-up comes as Burberry tries to revive a business that has been ravaged by lockdowns in China’s core market this year, forcing its stores to remain closed for weeks. A quarterly update in July said sales were up just 1 percent year-over-year.
Akeroyd, 54, has said he wants to strongly promote the group’s heritage and British roots, boost its luxury reputation and boost sales.
His predecessor, Gobbetti, worked with Tisci to elevate Burberry’s status while also shifting focus to attract a younger audience by partnering with figures such as footballer Marcus Rashford.
The new chief executive also hopes to rejuvenate Burberry’s anemic stock price, which was about five years ago despite several swings. Yesterday, shares were up 5.5 percent, or 92p, to 1776.5p.
But the tight cost of living and fears of a recession are weighing on consumers’ ability to dish out luxuries.
“Burberry may face a challenging time with slowing global growth that could weigh on consumer demand from its key markets, including China,” said Interactive Investor’s Victoria Scholar.