Big leadership wage rises at underperforming businesses are a surefire way to attract negative attention, no matter what the industry. And it’s fashion’s turn with the CEO of struggling ASOS under the spotlight.

José Antonio Ramos Calamonte has been awarded a £300,000 (44%) annual pay rise to £1.17 million, despite the digital fashion retailer’s operating losses hitting £331.9 million in the fiscal year to 1 September.

Despite financial setbacks, ASOS justified the pay rise emphasising “enhanced profitability under difficult market conditions”.

An ASOS spokesman noted that all salary and bonus decisions undergo board approval, aligning with industry standards and linked to meeting strategic targets. 

The spokesperson highlighted advances made during the past year towards transforming the business. While the retail climate has been difficult, ASOS claims improvements in product positioning have substantially boosted profitability.

But earlier this month, it described the year to early September as “tough”. As those operating losses widened, group revenue also fell 16% on a like-for-like basis to £2.896 billion and UK retail sales declined 14% to £1.27 billion. Active customer numbers also fell 16%.

And while ASOS is supporting its CEO’s wages improvement, other struggling retailers such as Dr Martens and Burberry, have forgone leadership bonuses due to lacklustre profits. Similarly, Boohoo Group also cancelled executive bonuses following shareholder objections.