Peter Cowgill, arguably the most successful British retailer of the past two decades, resigned sensationally tonight as CEO of JD Sports amid speculation that he had been sacked.
Its immediate release was announced just 12 minutes before the close of today’s trading session and the news immediately sent JD Sports shares a little more than 6%, removing 377 million free of market value of the company.
Announcing the move, JD Sports said that as a result of an ongoing review of its government and internal controls, it had decided to speed up the separation of the functions of chairman and chief executive officer.
JD announced in July last year that it would split the roles of chairman and CEO for the next 12 months following criticism of its corporate governance by shareholders.
Some JD investors have long been concerned about the power of Mr. Cowgill in the boardroom.
He has been leading JD, who is described in his marketing as the “king of coaches”, with no executives since Barry Bown left in 2014.
These concerns intensified when, in February, the Competition and Markets Authority fined the company £ 4.3 million for failing to establish guarantees, sharing commercially sensitive information and failing to alert the regulator to a meeting between Cowgill. and Bown, who had gone on to become CEO of Footasylum, which JD had previously owned, but was forced to sell by the watchdog for competition reasons.
Some shareholders had also complained about the decision to pay Mr. Cowgill a £ 4 million bonus after a year in which JD received taxpayer money to alleviate business rates and staff layoffs during COVID blockades.
JD said Wednesday evening that Helen Ashton, currently non-executive director of JD Sports and chair of the company’s audit and risk committee, would become interim non-executive chair.
Ms. Ashton, who joined JD’s board in November last year, has previously held executive-level roles at online fashion retailer ASOS, Lloyds Banking Group and Barclays.
Image: Peter Cowgill, CEO of JD Sports
Kath Smith, currently JD’s senior independent director, will become interim executive director. He previously worked in the industry as CEO of the Adidas and Reebok brands and in the outerwear group The North Face.
Ashton said: “The business has grown strongly under Peter’s leadership to become a leading global multi-channel retailer with a proven strategy and a clear drive.
“However, as our business has grown larger and more complex, what is clear is that our internal infrastructure, government and controls have not developed at the same pace.
“As we take advantage of the great opportunities ahead, the board is committed to ensuring that we have the highest standards of corporate governance and appropriate controls for an FTSE-100 company to support future growth.”
Speculation that Mr Cowgill, 67, was nearing the end of his time at the company intensified when, in January this year, he sold shares of JD worth £ 21 million. , equivalent to half of its stake in the company.
The departure of Mr. Cowgill lowers the curtain on one of the most successful retail careers of recent times.
The Manchester United fan, famous in the retail sector for his good-natured approach to work, seven days a week, had been in charge since 2004 and led JD Sports from being a small retailer to an FTSE 100 member with over 2,500 outlets around the world that until recently were valued at more than £ 8 billion.
His genius was to identify the emerging trend of the so-called ‘athleisure’ and detect that four brands – Reebok, Nike, Puma and Adidas – were ready to dominate the industry.
He established close relationships with all of them and, unlike his rival Mike Ashley on Sports Direct, did his best to embrace these vendors instead of falling for them.
Stockbroker AJ Bell calculated in November last year that since becoming CEO in 2004, Cowgill has generated total returns for shareholders of more than 15,000%, compared to only 211% of the FTSE. 100.
Image: attributed to Mr. Cowgill identifying the so-called “athleisure” trend
Mr. Cowgill, who grew up in Kearsley on the outskirts of Bolton, was a businessman from an early age, selling books on a rug from his family’s front door.
Outstanding in school for his excellent arithmetic skills, he studied at the University of Hull before qualifying as an accountant, but quickly left the company he had qualified to establish his own accounting business, Cowgill Holloway. , at the age of 28 above a Bolton. barber shop. David Makin and John Wardle, the J and D of JD Sports, were among his first clients and eventually ended up working with them.
Known for keeping his feet on the ground, despite his wealth, he prefers to drink with his old friends at his local, the Kearsley Spread Eagle, in high life.
Despite complaints from some investors about JD’s corporate governance, it is likely that Mr. Cowgill is greeted with dismay in parts of the city, where he retains a major fan club.
Eleanora Dani, of Shore Capital stockbroker and investment bank, said Cowgill had been instrumental in JD’s success. He said that although the separation of his roles had been marked, a more gradual process had been expected, with Mr. Cowgill remained president for a couple of years.
He added: “The company is strictly managed with excellent cash generation, tight stocks and cost controls. In our opinion, JD Sports is still the best retailer in its category … however, we are disappointed to see Mr. Cowgill leave and look forward to hearing more from the company. “