Virtually 20 years in the past I had a really short-lived diversion from journalism into public relations. I quickly discovered being on that aspect of the communications fence was not for me, however I retain nice admiration for individuals who handle the media nicely.
How to not deal with the press was disastrously illustrated final week. In one of the weird episodes I’ve witnessed in 40-plus years of writing concerning the retail sector, we noticed the Fenwick group withdraw its provide of the CEO’s place from division retailer veteran Nigel Blow, who has been CEO of Fenwick’s London-based rival Morleys Group for 5 years.
Blow has additionally run Brown Thomas and Arnotts within the Irish Republic between 2007 and 2015, so he’s a division retailer man by means of and thru. These companies have been owned by the Weston household, one other division retailer dynasty, who till not too long ago additionally owned Selfridges.
Blow has been maintaining some good firm in his profession.
His Fenwick appointment was introduced in July. He has been figuring out his discover at Morleys since then and he was as a result of begin his new job on 17 October. In a shock assertion broadly quoted within the press, on 2 October the Newcastle-based firm acknowledged: “Nigel Blow has knowledgeable us that he’ll now not be taking on this place”.
Blow immediately contradicted that on Friday, 4 October together with his personal assertion. In his model of occasions, Fenwick chairman Sian Westerman advised him the corporate was “was not capable of proceed” together with his employment as CEO “with the intention to safeguard the status of the Fenwick enterprise”. He stated he had not agreed to Fenwick’s assertion.
What seems to have prompted this sudden change of coronary heart on Tyneside is an e-mail despatched to Fenwick on 30 September by BBC enterprise information reporter Ben King. Blow stated in his assertion he has not been given sight of this e-mail.
King’s e-mail presumably made point out of the 90-minute documentary entitled Al Fayed: Predator of Harrods, which was first proven on BBC Two on 19 September; it stays out there to see by way of the BBC iPlayer.
It’s a disturbing and miserable account of the grotesque behaviour of Mohamed Al Fayed, who owned the Knightsbridge retailer between 1985 and 2010, when he bought it to its present homeowners, the Qatari royal household.
Within the documentary round 20 ladies recount the sexual assaults, together with rape, they suffered from the person who was their omnipotent boss. It’s an appalling and sickening saga. One can solely hope the ladies concerned have discovered some reduction and even consolation from relating their tales.
It’s unclear for the way lengthy the programme has been in manufacturing. Many will really feel, as I do, that it’s a disgrace it has been broadcast solely now, greater than a yr after Fayed died aged 94, so he isn’t round to reply his victims or face a felony trial.
For my part, the BBC in latest instances has proven an inclination to make “information” tales out of its personal output. Accordingly, the Al Fayed programme has led to many former Harrods executives being pressed by the company to make a press release about their response to the documentary and “what they knew” about Fayed’s repulsive actions.
Blow’s downside – if that’s what it’s – appears to be that he labored at Harrods from 1992 till 2007 earlier than his transfer to Eire to work for the Westons. In his assertion, he confirms he held senior positions at Harrods from 2002 till his departure. He had labored primarily in menswear on the Knightsbridge retailer and was head service provider in his remaining years.
His assertion consists of this declaration: “I can affirm that, throughout my time on the enterprise, I by no means heard about or witnessed any such behaviour by Mr Al Fayed.
“I did witness, nevertheless, quite a few situations of workers’ places of work, telephones and even vehicles being bugged, together with my very own, as nicely understanding there have been instances I used to be adopted by safety. On a number of events I noticed transcripts of my very own phone calls on Mr Al Fayed’s desk. Such behaviour prompted me to hunt different employment from 2006.”
It’s attention-grabbing to notice how the BBC offered the scenario on a web-based information merchandise on 2 October, beneath Ben King’s byline. It reads: “A protracted-serving former Harrods govt has determined to not develop into the boss of division retailer Fenwick regardless of being as a result of begin this month, the BBC has discovered.
“Nigel Blow labored at Harrods for 14 years from 1992 to 2007, a interval when the luxurious London retailer was owned by Mohamed Al Fayed.
“It comes after the BBC broadcast a documentary final month primarily based on the accounts of greater than 20 ladies who stated that they had been sexually assaulted or raped by Al Fayed whereas working at Harrods.
“Following the allegations towards Al Fayed, Mr Blow declined to reply a number of requests for remark. A day after contacting Fenwick, nevertheless, the BBC was advised he would now not be taking the position.
“The BBC first tried to contact Mr Blow on 21 September – and acquired no response to a number of subsequent requests.
“On 30 September Fenwick was contacted to ask if it had any remark to make concerning the documentary and Mr Blow’s long-standing hyperlinks with Harrods.
“About 24 hours later, Fenwick advised the BBC: ‘Nigel Blow has knowledgeable us that he’ll now not be taking on this place.’
No cause for the choice has been given.”
As a journalist, I used to be intrigued by the development of this story, which in my opinion is laden with innuendo towards Blow, who I’ve identified, though not nicely, since his later years at Harrods. I used to be that the BBC claimed to have first tried to contact him on 21 September, which was a Saturday. How did they try this, I’m wondering.
I used to be intrigued too about phrases like “Mr Blow declined a number of requests for remark” and “The BBC…acquired no response to a number of subsequent requests”. What number of is “a number of” and the way have been these requests delivered? If Blow declined, he should have responded, mustn’t he? There’s some very slack journalism right here.
In his assertion of 4 October, Blow asserted: “The BBC claims I’ve declined to touch upon a number of events, however not as soon as has any enquiry reached me personally. On Thursday 26th September Ben King from the BBC despatched an e-mail by way of the Morleys common enquiry e-mail.”
I’m not positive an e-mail despatched to an organization’s generic enquiry handle qualifies for an investigative journalism award, however others might imagine in another way.
The BBC story additionally consists of what I regard as one other “nudge, nudge, wink, wink” reference: “In 2013 (Blow) took up a put up with one other Fayed firm – this time as managing director of Turnbull and Asser, the shirt-maker with a Royal Warrant from Prince Charles. It’s owned by the Fayed household and chaired by Ali Fayed, Mohamed’s brother, the place he stayed till 2017.”
Ignoring the odd syntax within the remaining sentence, my reminiscence on that is that Mohamed’s two youthful brothers, Ali and Salah, have been working with him on the time of the Harrods acquisition in 1985. Among the many group’s many property, I feel, have been Jermyn Avenue-based Turnbull & Asser (aka T&A), the premium footwear enterprise Kurt Geiger and a personal jet firm, Harrods Aviation. It was a retail combined bag.
My understanding for a few years has been that Ali started to distance himself from the more and more eccentric Mohamed quickly after the Harrods buy and at some stage acquired and took sole management of T&A. I’ve by no means met Ali Al Fayed however individuals who have at all times advised me, “He’s an actual gent – nothing in any respect like his brother.”
In his assertion, Blow writes: “Reference has additionally been made to me becoming a member of Turnbull & Asser as Managing Director in March 2013 on return from Eire, this firm was privately owned by Mohammed Al Fayed’s brother, Mr Ali Fayed and his 3 sons whom I maintain in very excessive regard, they reside within the US and I don’t imagine they’d have identified something about these horrible allegations in Harrods. Mohammed Al Fayed was nothing to do with the possession of Turnbull & Asser.”
I’m wondering why the BBC’s King thought T&A worthy of point out. Didn’t the truth that Prince Charles awarded the agency a Royal Warrant recommend to him that it might have been considerably totally different to Harrods? I be aware King Charles has simply renewed the menswear agency’s Royal Warrant.
What struck me most concerning the BBC’s stance in its information merchandise is its obvious lack of any appreciation for the context right here. Blow had two weeks or much less to go at Morleys and had not but joined Fenwick, so he was successfully between two administration seats.
The enquiry from the BBC referenced Blow’s time at Harrods 17 years or extra earlier. Why ought to Morleys get entangled? It is a much-admired retailer enterprise, working eight shops primarily in and round London, together with Elys of Wimbledon and Morleys of Brixton. It’s wholly owned by Bernard Dreesmann, a gentleman who I do know to be as charming in personal as he’s publicity-shy in his skilled life.
It’s not broadly identified that at this time’s group has its roots method again in 1927, when Dreesmann’s grandfather purchased what was then the Morley and Lanceley retailer in Brixton.
I’ve identified Dreesmann for a few years and whereas he’s glad to speak about enterprise off-the-record, he at all times insists he isn’t quoted. Whereas this could be irritating for Very Vital Individuals like me and Ben King on the BBC, he’s fully in his rights because the proprietor of a personal firm.
I used to be under no circumstances stunned, due to this fact, to be taught that Morleys Group didn’t instantly reply to the BBC e-mail. It could have been ill-advised and missing in media savvy to take this strategy, however it’s not sinister or a criminal offense.
In an odd coincidence, the opposite division retailer enterprise that almost all jogs my memory of Morleys Group is Fenwick. Additionally personal, additionally family-owned, it is just up to now 20 years or in order that you’ll find a lot written about Fenwick within the enterprise media. Once I began within the business in 1980 I used to be advised to not hassle calling the corporate as a result of it didn’t speak to the press.
Additionally, like a British C&A, Fenwick was well-known (or notorious) for having solely males, nearly all Fenwick cousins, on its board. That too has modified in recent times. Sian Westerman, who’s an funding banker with Rothschild & Co, was made Fenwick chairman earlier this yr, having been a non-executive director since March 2019.
Equally to my expertise with Bernard Dreesmann, I’ve lengthy had cordial relations with former chairman Mark Fenwick and his cousin Adam. Once we met in social events, they have been at all times glad to swap notes and information, however all off the file.
Based in Newcastle in 1882 by John James Fenwick, it runs eight shops. About 10 years in the past, when discussing the corporate with a contact, it was advised to me the household wished to maintain the enterprise however wished others to run it.
Due to this fact, since 2017, when the Fenwick household stepped again from “lively responsibility”, the corporate has had 4 chairmen (together with Westerman). Blow would have been its third CEO in seven years, following well-regarded retail business professionals Robbie Feather and John Edgar. (Edgar, by coincidence, additionally has Harrods on his CV: he was its CFO throughout 2012-2017 within the post-Al Fayed period).
I’m wondering what, if something, the Fenwick household shareholders knew of the choice to cancel the provide of the CEO’s position to Blow.
So the place are we now after final week’s proceedings? Nigel Blow may have no job in a few week’s time and his skilled status has been tarnished. As he put in his assertion, Fenwick appears to have discovered him “responsible by affiliation” as a result of his time at Harrods. He added: “I imagine Fenwick’s motion is unjustified, unfair and in breach of contract”.
Morleys Group is presumably nonetheless searching for a CEO. Fenwick is presumably searching for a CEO once more. And we are not any additional ahead with any data about who knew what, and when, throughout Al Fayed’s grim tenure at Harrods.
It’s value mentioning that any pretence of respectability for the Egyptian-born egomaniac was exploded solely a few years after he acquired Harrods by an in depth expose referred to as A Hero From Zero, funded by his enterprise rival, Roland “Tiny” Rowland, who additionally wished to purchase Harrods. The guide rubbished Al Fayed’s declare to be from a rich Cairo dynasty and highlighted numerous murky enterprise dealings.
Moreover, stories of Al Fayed’s sexual predatory nature return at the least so far as an article in Vainness Honestjournal in 1995, which is talked about at size within the documentary. British information journal Non-public Eye was additionally writing about his inappropriate behaviour in the direction of feminine employees not lengthy afterwards. In a chunk from the difficulty of 29 Might 1998 that has been reprinted in a latest subject of the Eye, Fayed is known as “the revolting previous lecher”.
Given this background, the BBC documentary prompts the query: why has all this come out once more now? The programme mentions that since final yr the present homeowners of Harrods have been settling claims from ladies who allege they suffered sexual harassment and far worse from Al Fayed.
A category motion towards Harrods alleging what quantities to company failure to guard employees is underway; legal professionals concerned on this initiative seem within the programme.
For the reason that September 19 broadcast, the BBC has saved the Fayed story lively by contacting former and present Harrods employees for “remark” and posting “information” tales on this. Their implication seems to be that some, or many, folks on the retailer should have identified about Fayed’s actions.
In preparation for this characteristic, I contacted each Fenwick’s press workplace and the BBC press workplace to make clear a number of factors.
On behalf of Fenwick, I acquired a response from Milltown Companions, a “international status and coverage advisory” agency. It states: “Fenwick is not going to be making any additional remark on the file. Please consult with its authentic assertion: ‘In July 2024, we introduced that we might be appointing Nigel Blow as CEO of Fenwick. Nigel Blow has knowledgeable us that he’ll now not be taking on this place.’
From the BBC, the response was: “We stand totally behind our journalist and our journalism. This story, which was totally within the public curiosity, was produced according to the BBC’s editorial requirements, together with contacting Mr Blow earlier than publication.
“Mr Blow himself acknowledges in his assertion that we contacted him by way of his then employer: On Thursday 26th September Ben King from the BBC despatched an e-mail by way of the Morley’s common enquiry e-mail. As it’s 18 years since I labored at Harrods, and I used to be about to go away the enterprise, it was determined internally that, as CEO of Morley’s, I ought to make no response.”
Neither response addresses any of the important thing questions I posed about this sorry story. Neither Fenwick nor the BBC responded to my request to see the BBC e-mail despatched to Fenwick on 30 September.
Are we now to presume that anybody who labored at Harrods in a senior position between 1985 and 2010 is unemployable? In that case, that should apply to dozens, if not a whole lot, of business folks. What additional media protection will seem now?
Postscript: I don’t like the fashionable world’s obsession with e-mail. I do know from earlier expertise that Fenwick’s press workplace doesn’t permit the agency’s switchboard operators to offer out the names of anybody within the media crew or to offer any phone numbers. You must e-mail [email protected]. Not communications coverage in my guide, however all too frequent today.
Funnily sufficient, earlier this yr, editor Lauretta Roberts and I agreed a characteristic on Fenwick can be attention-grabbing for theindustry.trend. With the subject material “An interview with John Edgar”, I wrote a well mannered e-mail request that pressured, “We’re very all for discovering out extra concerning the plans for what’s now the most important and most profitable unbiased / family-owned division retailer enterprise.”
I discussed I knew senior members of the Fenwick household. I imagine a request from a well-regarded outlet like theindustry.trend deserves a response. I’m additionally conceited sufficient to assume I deserve a well mannered reply too.
I despatched the e-mail at 5.13pm on Wednesday, 7 February. Eight months later, I’m nonetheless ready to listen to again from the Fenwick press crew on this. Maybe a brand new CEO, when she or he begins, will enhance the corporate’s communication efficiency.
