SuperGroup is growing up

In the same way as its togs are increasingly sported by older consumers, Supergroup is becoming more mature.

The retailer is moving from the business equivalent of volatile teenage years, characterised by wild swings in its fortunes as it impressed and disappointed in almost equal measure, to a more assured adulthood.

The shift can be seen in some of the management changes made this week, which brought the appointment of former TK Maxx boss and John Lewis fashion and beauty director Susanne Given as chief operating officer.

The City expects Given to improve SuperGroup’s operational execution and improve efficiency, and she will oversee vital functions such as logistics, which has undermined SuperGroup’s performance in its short life as a public company.

As well as Givens, new appointments include former Reiss staffer Claire Arksey as head of retail and Shaun Wills. He brings experience from Fat Face, New Look and Habitat, and becomes chief financial officer as incumbent Chas Howes takes more of a back-seat role.

The appointments look like welcome evidence that SuperGroup is becoming increasingly professionalised.

SuperGroup’s success to date has been driven by co-founder and chief executive Julian Dunkerton. Fuelled by coffee and cigarettes, he built the business from nothing into a stock market darling.

It’s essential that SuperGroup retains that entrepreneurial verve – Dunkerton will concentrate on brand and product development – but equally important that the enthusiasm and seat-of-the-pants business style appropriate to a privately run rather than a public firm is balanced by the discipline that good professional managers can bring.

Some observers still fret about the longevity of the Superdry brand but the retailer looks as if it has plenty of room to grow, particularly internationally and online. This week’s management changes should put the retailer in a better position to take advantage of the opportunities.