Ted Baker has appointed company insider Lindsay Page as chief executive officer with immediate effect, replacing Ray Kelvin who resigned in March. Page joined Ted Baker as group finance director in February 1997 and took on the additional role of chief operating officer in July 2014. He has been acting CEO since Kelvin’s departure. Kelvin developed the Ted Baker brand in Glasgow and had been CEO since the company’s launch in 1988. However, allegations of misconduct involving “forced huggin
hugging” and “a culture that leaves harassment unchallenged” led to an independent investigation by law firm Herbert Smith Freehills.
Ted Baker says the appointment of Page marks the end of that investigation. It says it has instituted staff training programs regarding appropriate workplace conduct.
However, the Guardian reports that Ted Baker is now under pressure to release the findings of that investigation after it said that the lawyers had noted “several areas for improvement”.
Several major shareholders told the Guardian that they are concerned that the lack of transparency over the report makes the retailer vulnerable to future legal and reputational challenges.
