After almost exactly five years, Douglas boss Müller is retiring from the top. The company speaks of a new phase. The successor will be a previous discount manager. The change is said to have been preceded by a dispute over the course of the company.
Change of management at Douglas: The previous boss, Tina Müller, is moving to the supervisory board “at her own request”. The company announces this. The former boss of the non-food discounter Action, Sander van der Laan, will take over the management of the largest German perfumery chain on November 1st. According to “Spiegel”, the decision was preceded by different opinions about the further direction.
Douglas supervisory board chairman Henning Kreke stressed that Sander van der Laan was the ideal candidate “to lead Douglas into the next phase”. Under his leadership, Action increased its sales from two to more than five billion euros within a few years and also significantly improved its operating result.
The Germany boss of Douglas majority owner CVC, Alexander Dibelius, thanked the 54-year-old Müller for her work. She gave Douglas a modern digital orientation, tripled e-commerce sales and steered the company safely through the pandemic.
According to “Spiegel”, there are doubts about the strategy at CVC and concern that sales will collapse. According to insiders, CVC wanted to have a management consultancy search for savings opportunities. Because Douglas has to service the debt and is therefore forced to a certain profit margin. Müller, on the other hand, saw their previous course in danger, which would have required further investments. In addition, the online trade that she promoted had fallen out of the focus of the owners again after the traditional business had recovered after a Corona slump.
Douglas had reported more sales and a higher operating result for the spring. The end of numerous corona requirements caused “a kind of small special boom,” Müller explained at the end of August. People went to weddings, family celebrations and festivals again – and made themselves beautiful for it. She also expected earnings to rise for the final quarter, which ends at Douglas at the end of September.
Sales climbed in the third quarter at the end of June from 644 million to 830 million euros over the year. According to the information, the adjusted operating result (EBITDA) increased from 24 million to 64 million euros. The bottom line, however, was still a minus, which, at almost 55 million euros, was lower than in the previous year.
Müller took over the post in November. Previously, she had worked, among other things, as a marketing board member at the car manufacturer Opel.
