Jonathan Akeroyd to leave Versace for British fashion house Burberry

Jonathan will report to chair Gerry Murphy and the board of directors, the brand said in a media release.

In his tenure at Versace, Jonathan has reorganised and accelerated growth at the iconic Italian fashion house, building on the brand’s rich creative heritage to elevate product, communications and the customer experience, while at Alexander McQueen he led a turnaround of the brand and laid the foundation for global expansion. He has also held a number of senior fashion roles at London-based luxury department store Harrods.

Gerry Murphy, chair of Burberry commented: “I am delighted that Jonathan Akeroyd will be joining Burberry as our next chief executive officer. Jonathan is an experienced leader with a strong track record in building global luxury fashion brands and driving profitable growth. He shares our values and our ambition to build on Burberry’s unique British creative heritage and his deep luxury and fashion industry expertise will be key to advancing the next phase of Burberry’s evolution.”

Jonathan Akeroyd said: “I am honoured to be joining Burberry as Chief Executive Officer. I have long admired Burberry’s position as the most iconic British luxury brand, and I have a deep affection for its storied heritage. I am looking forward to returning to London where I first built my career in the luxury industry to join a talented team with ambitious plans for the future and a strong platform to accelerate growth.”

Jonathan will succeed Marco Gobbetti, who will step down from the role and leave Burberry on December 31, 2021. Gerry Murphy will chair the executive committee from this date until Jonathan joins Burberry.

Fibre2Fashion News Desk (KD)