Selfridges CFO exits after four months

Selfridges Chief Financial Officer Preetha McCann has stepped down after just four months in the role. 

She joined the department store in November 2023 from professional services group EY, replacing Matthew Smith in the position.

In a post on LinkedIn, McCann said: "I have stepped away from my role as CFO at Selfridges. The brand is a magical one that I have always, and will continue, to love. Sending a big shout out and thanks to the amazing people in the Finance, Merchandising and Legal teams who I enjoyed working with."

The departure comes amid growing uncertainty over the future ownership of the British department store. However, McCann’s exit is said to be unrelated, sources told The Telegraph.

Last week, Selfridges attracted interest from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) and Kering, the parent company of Gucci, with the insolvency of its co-owner triggering a battle for the business.

It followed the collapse of Signa, the Austrian firm run by businessman Rene Benko that owns half of Selfridges’ property company, sparking interest in the retailer's ownership as its stake becomes available.

Selfridges is split into a property business, which controls the department stores, and an operating business. Both had been jointly owned by the two companies, but Central moved to take control of the operating business during the turmoil at Signa late last year.

The speculation around its ownership comes after Selfridges set out to "resize and reshape" the business last year, including redundancies at its head office and retail stores to "drive efficiency",  following losses of almost £40 million in the year to January 2023.