Christopher Bailey Out as CEO at Burberry

Christopher Bailey, chief executive officer of Burberry Group Plc, stands for a photograph as he arrives at an event to launch the Burberry festive campaign in London, U.K., on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2015. The global market for personal luxury goods is heading for its weakest year since 2009 as a combination of stock market turmoil, a strong dollar and a commodity-price rout curb demand. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images

By Joe Keenan

Burberry replaced Christopher Bailey as its CEO on Monday, ending the project of having him both lead the fashion house and serve as its chief creative officer. The luxury goods maker named Marco Gobbetti, CEO of French luxury brand Celine, as its new chief executive. He will take over in 2017. Bailey will stay on as chief creative officer and as president.

Total Retail's Take: Bailey had a tough act to follow, as he was the successor to Angela Ahrendts, who helped revive the luxury fashion brand during her eight-year tenure as CEO. In the end, Bailey was unable to continue the brand's momentum started by Ahrendts. Burberry has seen its sales fall and been forced to implement cost-cutting measures to keep afloat in the challenging luxury sector.

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Joe Keenan Author's page Joe Keenan is the executive editor of Total Retail. Joe has more than 10 years experience covering the retail industry, and enjoys profiling innovative companies and people in the space.