The chief executive and chairman of the discount Shoe Zone chain have extended their controlling stake in the company after buying the shares of an outgoing director.
CEO Anthony Smith and chairman Charles Smith have acquired 234,375 ordinary shares in the Leicester-headquartered business through Sheepy Magna Investments – an investment vehicle which they each own half of.
They bought the shares from the Sharman Family Pension fund after Jeremy Sharman, a beneficiary in the fund, resigned as non-executive director from the Shoe Zone board.
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Mr Sharman is being replaced by Victoria Norrish, the supply chain director at TheWorks.co.uk plc.
She previously worked as head of management accounts at Jessops, having commenced her career as an auditor with KPMG and Godkin & Co.
Anthony Smith became chief executive – a position he also previously held – in 2019, having been the company’s executive chairman since June 2016.
Earlier this year the business announced Charles Smith had become its permanent new chairman, having been appointed interim chairman in August 2019.
The business has its roots in the 1980s, when it was founded by the pair’s father and their uncle.
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Following the asset swap transactions, Charles Smith’s share in the listed company has increased to 22.5 per cent and Anthony Smith’s share stands at 28.1 per cent.
Jeremy Sharman said: “I am proud to have served on the Shoe Zone board for the last nine years.
“Having now completed two full terms of three years as a public company it is an appropriate time for me to step down as a non-executive director.
“I am pleased to have been involved in the recruitment process for my successor and am sure that Victoria Norrish will bring a wealth of talent and experience to the board.
“Shoe Zone is a first class company which treats all of its stakeholders, customers, staff and shareholders with the utmost integrity. I wish the team every success in the future.”
Earlier this summer the discount footwear chain announced it was closing 20 stores and had carried out a redundancy programme at its Leicester head office.
The business said a double whammy of lockdown and supply chain disruption had pushed it into the red for the previous six months.
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The chain, which has 3,500 staff, was suffering the effects of the coronavirus even before the lockdown was imposed as shoppers stayed at home.
Since June it has reopened most of its 490 shops.
The business suffered pre-tax losses of £2.5 million in the half year to April 4 – when lockdown had only just begun – compared to a £1 million profit a year earlier.
Turnover for the period was £68.9 million, compared to £73 million the same time last year.\u0009