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Next has revealed it awarded chief executive Simon Wolfson a “record” £7.4m pay deal for the year ended January 2026, as the business reported higher profits and multiple upgrades to its financial forecasts.
It comes as the retailer’s annual report confirmed Wolfson’s total remuneration reached £7.426m, marking a significant rise from the £4.9m he received the prior year.
The total included a £967k base salary, a £1.45m annual bonus, and £4.7m from long-term incentive schemes. The group said executive director salaries are also set to increase by 3% this year, bringing Wolfson’s pay to £1m.
The company will ask shareholders to approve a “more lucrative” pay policy at its annual general meeting, scheduled for 21 May. This plan would see Wolfson’s potential annual bonus rise from 150% to 200% of his salary.
Furthermore, the maximum grant for his long-term incentive plan would grow from 225% to 400% of his base pay. These changes follow a period of strong financial growth for the fashion firm.
Next posted a pre-tax profit of £1.158bn for the year to January 2026, representing a 14.5% increase. Meanwhile, statutory pre-tax profits for the same period reached £1.19bn.
As a result, the group has raised its pre-tax profits target for the year to January 2027 by £8m, setting a new goal of £1.21bn. It expects full-price sales growth to remain at 4.5%.
While domestic trading during the first eight weeks of the financial year was positive, the company noted that Middle Eastern conflicts could create future volatility. Next warned that continued disruption might impact consumer demand and pricing.
The board maintained that higher remuneration was essential to motivate senior leaders and assist with future succession planning.
The remuneration committee wrote in Next’s business report: “Wolfson’s total pay was now approximately 30% below FTSE 100 median. Given Next’s sustained outperformance, current remuneration levels were no longer appropriately aligned with performance.”
