Premier retail chief steps down

Mark McInnes has stepped down as chief executive of Premier Investments, the company behind retail franchises Just Jeans, Peter Alexander and Smiggle.

Premier announced the resignation this morning, noting Mr McInnis’s “desire to commit more time to his family than the demands of his role allow”.

Premier chair and retail veteran Solomon Lew said the board had begun its search for a new CEO.

It comes less than a week after Premier flagged an annual rise in its first-half earnings of between 75 per cent and 85 per cent, to between $221 million and $233 million.

That was largely attributable to a surge in online sales.

“Premier has delivered year-on-year record operational and financial performance under Mark’s leadership,” Mr Lew said today.

“We have thrived in very challenging times while many of our competitors have struggled or failed.

“After a decade in the CEO role, I understand and fully support Mark’s decision to leave for personal reasons.”

Mr McInnes, also a director of Premier, is subject to a 12-month notice period.

Premier says it has the option to restrain Mr McInnes from engaging in specified retail-related activities for a further two-year period.

Shares in the group closed down 2.3 per cent to trade at $23.75.