Arcadia Group poaches Booker chief as its marketing director

Arcadia Group has appointed Booker’s marketing chief Steve Sharp as its group marketing director, less than a year after scrapping the position.

In a restructure last August Arcadia ousted marketing director Anita Bolger and gave marketing responsibilities to individual fashion brand managers.

Sharp has worked in a number of top marketing positions for the Argyll Group (now Safeway), Debenhams, and the Burton Group.

He will be responsible for store design and development, corporate relations, market research, PR and special events, and will report directly to Arcadia chief executive Stuart Rose. The company says Sharp’s role is more “strategic” than Bolger’s, and that individual brand managers will report directly to him.

Speculation is growing about the future of Arcadia’s numerous fashion brands, and an announcement is expected to be made tomorrow (Thursday), when Arcadia reveals its interim figures.

Rose, who joined the company in November, is expected to declare the proposed sale of Wade Smith, Racing Green and Hawkshead while retaining Top Shop, Burton and Dorothy Perkins as core brands.

Miss Selfridge and Principles are also under review. Rose recently questioned the business sense of having two competing fashion chains within the same group.

Arcadia’s share price has doubled since January, and the city expects profits of between &£20m and &£23m.