[imagesource: Dave Kotinsky/Getty Images]

It’s been a pretty tough past year or so for many South African businesses.

Woolworths’ last financial results for the 26 weeks ending December 29, 2019, showed a big drop in profit, and retailers like Checkers are looking to muscle in on their clientele.

Perhaps it’s not surprising that Woolworths Holdings appointed a new CEO last month, with Roy Bagattini, formerly the president of Levi Strauss Americas, taking over from Ian Moir.

Before we get to Moir’s rather disappointing showing, let’s head to Moneyweb for more on that lovely R54 million carrot:

…Bagattini, who took the top job on February 17, has been granted over 1.4 million shares under the group’s retention share plan (RSP). The shares were granted at a weighted average price of R37.8699 per share, with a total transaction value of R54.25 million.

The group says the vesting of these shares “is conditional upon the achievement of Mr Bagattini’s individual performance measures (IPM) and will vest over a three to five-year period”. This means he is already heavily incentivised to turn around the retailer which has two struggling operations: its core Woolworths clothing business and its Australian department store chain David Jones.

The full details of Bagattini’s payment structures will only be revealed in August, but it’s already abundantly clear that he stands to make a serious amount of dosh if he can deliver the goods for Woolies.

It won’t be easy, but that’s quite an incentive.

As for Moir (below), the previous CEO, his reign was at best a mixed bag, and in 2019 his resultant vesting in terms of short-term incentives was zero.

Image: Financial Mail

Not that he didn’t do alright for himself during his tenure, which kicked off with a R7,5 million signing on bonus in 2010, along with R20 million in shares and R5,9 million in compensation related to his Country Road incentive plan:

Moir has been criticised for his remuneration. Despite a cut in pay to R23 million in 2019 (from R30.5 million a year prior), his total earnings over the past five years since the ill-fated purchase of David Jones has been R191 million.

Meanwhile, according to PayScale, the average hourly rate for Woolworths employees in South Africa is R37,48 an hour, with Indeed estimating that cashiers can expect an average salary of R 3 782 per month.

I’m not sure those numbers would see Bagattini, or Moir, bother to get out of bed.

[source:moneyweb]