LONDON — British high street brand Reiss has named Christos Angelides as its new chief executive officer, curbing widespread speculation in the U.K. that he was going to head up the clothing division at Marks & Spencer.
The company said the appointment is part of a planned succession process, with Angelides taking over from the company’s founder and chairman David Reiss.
Angelides will oversee the global men’s and women’s fashion and accessories businesses, and work toward expanding the brand internationally following Reiss’ sale to private equity firm Warburg Pincus in April. Warburg has a majority stake in Reiss, with the remainder held by the family.
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“I have long admired the strength of the Reiss brand and its emphasis on timeless luxury at an affordable price. I look forward to building on the strong foundations that David has built and expanding the business further in both the U.K. and internationally together with the support of Warburg Pincus,” said Angelides, who is bringing more than 30 years of retail experience to the company.
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Speculation about Angelides’ next move had been rampant following his exit from Abercrombie & Fitch and Abercrombie Kids where he served as president, based in the U.S. He had previously served as group product director for the British high street label Next. He will join Reiss at the end of March.
His tenure at Abercrombie was cut short — he left in December 2015 after only 14 months to make way for Hollister brand president Fran Horowitz — but he was paid handsomely for his services.
As reported, he received severance of $5.5 million, which boosted his compensation from the company to $8.5 million, including a salary of $903,154 and stock awards and options valued at $2.1 million, making him the highest-paid executive at A&F in 2015.
David Reiss added that he was drawn to Angelides’ multichannel retail experience as Reiss aims for global expansion. “I look forward to working closely with him in order to ensure an orderly succession. He brings significant retail experience which will be invaluable as Reiss grows into an international fashion brand.”
As part of the succession process, Andy Lawrence has been named head of international. He previously held executive positions in Ralph Lauren as senior director of business development for Asia-Pacific.
The fashion brand, know as a favorite of the Duchess of Cambridge, operates more than 160 stores in 15 countries with a well-developed e-commerce presence. In 2015, the company generated sales of 146 million pounds, or $208 million at current exchange, and EBITDA, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization of 24.4 million pounds, or $34.7 million.
Following last April’s investment by Warburg Pincus and Angelides’ appointment, the brand said it is planning further overseas expansion, focusing on North America, Asia and Australia.