AGM Statement

Mulberry Group PLC 24 September 2002 Mulberry Group plc AGM Statement At the Annual General Meeting of the Group held today where all resolutions were passed, Roger Saul, Chairman and Chief Executive, made the following comments: 'Notwithstanding what was a difficult and traumatic year, the underlying trading performance of the Group has continued to make progress. The trading outlook in our sector is flat. Retailers in Europe are reporting declining sales of clothing and accessories while consumer spending in the UK appears to be slowing. Against this background, however, we are seeing growth in our UK accessories and menswear wholesale business for both Autumn/Winter 2002 and Spring/Summer 2003. Whilst womenswear is more difficult. In our own shops the overall level of business is up on last year with Bond Street being open throughout the entire period. The next six months, and in particular Christmas, will show the underlying trends more clearly. This sales growth is due to the quality of our products and the success of our PR and marketing in the UK. I am pleased to report that our new store design for Bond Street swept the retail shop design awards winning Best Store. This design is now being rolled out in Europe and Russia with the following franchise shops now open or being opened in the next six months: The Hague, Moscow, St Petersburg, Ekaterinsberg and Stockholm. Over the last year, there have been many changes and challenges for our staff. I am grateful to all of them for their continued enthusiasm and commitment to creating a truly international brand. We have been working to build the management team over the last two years so that the Group has the management resources to support its future development. In the last six months we have made the key step of appointing a new Design Director, Nicholas Knightly. This has enabled me to step back from my day-to-day involvement in this area. Accordingly, we have decided that this is an appropriate time to move to the next stage of our plan and split the role of Chairman and Chief Executive. The Board is therefore pleased to announce that we have appointed headhunters to search for a new Chief Executive. This search is expected to take between six to nine months. Once the new Chief Executive is in position, I will continue as Chairman.' Roger Saul 24 September 2002 Enquiries: Mulberry Group Tel: 01749 340502 Roger Saul, Chairman and Chief Executive WMC Communications Tel: 020 7591 3999 David Wynne-Morgan This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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