Breakfast briefing: Retail news on Yoox Net-a-Porter and Next

Yoox Net-a-Porter sells 3% stake to UAE’s Alabbar Enterprises

Yoox Net-a-Porter has offloaded a €100m (£79m) stake to UAE retail group Alabbar Enterprises as the luxury online fashion retailer looks to enter the Middle Eastern market.

Mohamed Alabbar, the founder of Alabbar Enterprises and a businessman in Dubai, has snapped up a 3% stake via a capital raising and would also advise the company on its expansion plans.

The ecommerce group said it aims to use the fresh money from Alabbar to improve its websites in new markets and fund its “omnichannel platform that will underpin” the entire business. It also added that the firm does not look to invest in physical stores as a result of the deal.

Yoox Net-a-Porter chief executive Federico Marchetti said in a note to staff: “Alabbar founder Mohamed Alabbar would become a ‘strategic partner’”.

“The world’s biggest online retailer is joining forces with the world’s biggest brick-and-mortar retailer,” added Marchetti in a call from Milan.

Next cuts chief’s annual cash bonus after missing financial targets

Next has halved its chief executive Lord Wolfson’s bonus pay last year after it missed profit targets.

The high street retailer has cut his annual cash bonus from £1.1m a year before to £503,000; however still handed him a cash and shares package worth £4.8m.

Wolfson also netted shares worth £3.1m on top of his £751,000 salary.

“The challenging trading conditions encountered during the year and the reduction in the rate of growth of profit before tax and in earnings per share in 2015-16 as compared with the previous year are reflected in an annual bonus which is significantly less than that earned in 2014-15,” said Caroline Goodall, who chairs the Next remuneration committee.