Internal candidates to be the next chief executive of Marks & Spencer Plc will get a chance to shine on Tuesday when they present at the British retailer's first "investor day" for a decade.
Institutional shareholders and analysts will get to assess presentations by finance and operations director Ian Dyson, head of food John Dixon and head of clothing Kate Bostock, who are the internal candidates to become CEO next year.
M&S, which sells clothes, food and homewares from almost 700 stores in Britain and over 300 abroad, has been under fire from some investors for allowing Stuart Rose to take on the role of executive chairman, combining the roles of CEO and chairman, against governance guidelines to split the leading positions.
The company says it will appoint a CEO next year, when Rose will become non-executive chairman before leaving by July 2011, and would prefer an internal appointment.
M&S said the investor day would feature presentations on M&S's supply chain and IT, international and direct operations as well as on its food and general merchandise businesses.
"The purpose of the (investor) day is to provide greater detail on business priorities, Project 2020 and its role in delivering the group's current strategy," M&S said on Tuesday.
Project 2020, headed by Dyson, aims to increase M&S's pace of change, accelerate growth in on-line sales and drive its international business, particularly in China, India and central and eastern Europe.
Some investors are still unhappy with Rose, saying he may have to go earlier to ensure a smooth succession.
EXTERNAL CANDIDATES
Others are concerned M&S might run into the same sort of problems faced by broadcaster ITV Plc, which has seen a procession of big names rule themselves out of a top job.
Andy Bond, CEO of grocer Asda (part of Wal-Mart Stores Inc) and seen as a strong external candidate for the M&S job, said earlier this month he was not interested.
Charles Wilson, CEO of cash-and-carry group Booker Group Plc and a former lieutenant to Rose, has also ruled himself out.
Justin King, boss of supermarket group Sainsbury Plc, and Marc Bolland, CEO at Wm Morrison Supermarkets Plc, have both also been tipped for the job.
M&S shares plunged around 60 percent last year as Britain skidded into recession and the company admitted its upmarket foods business had been slow to respond to changing consumer demands.
But the stock has recovered around half those losses this year as M&S revived sales by cutting prices, stepping up promotions and introducing new products.
There have also been strategic initiatives and signs of a broader recovery in British consumer spending.
On Monday, M&S said it was revamping its Web site, while on Tuesday a survey showed UK retail sales rose at their fastest annual pace for five months.
M&S shares were up 1.6 pence at 364.2 pence at 0944 GMT, valuing the business at about 5.8 billion pounds ($9.2 billion). The stock trades on around 14 times forecast earnings, versus 13 times for Tesco Plc, according to Reuters data.
