Ferragamo picks Burberry's Gobbetti as its new chief

MILAN (Reuters) - Italian fashion group Salvatore Ferragamo said on Monday it had chosen Marco Gobbetti, the outgoing CEO of British luxury group Burberry, as its new chief executive.

Speculation over a possible management shake-up at Ferragamo has been circulating for some time, even after the Ferragamo family confirmed current Chief Executive Micaela Le Divelec on March.

Ferragamo has been hit harder than most rivals by the fallout of the coronavirus pandemic and is often cited by industry observers as a possible takeover target as smaller companies are less able to hedge themselves against changes in trends and tastes than the conglomerates in the industry.

The Italian luxury group last year called back former CEO Michele Norsa as executive director to help management revamp the brand and weather the COVID-19 storm.

Ferragamo, famous for shoes worn by Hollywood stars such as Audrey Hepburn, said Gobbetti would take up his new position as soon as he is released from his contractual obligations.

In a separate statement Burberry said Gobbetti would be leaving the British group at the end of 2021.

A former CEO of Moschino, Gobbetti spent 13 years in the LVMH group where he was CEO of Givenchy and Celine, before taking up his current post at Burberry, Ferragamo said.

Shares in Ferragamo were up 2.6% by 0704 GMT, outperforming a roughly flat All-Share index.

(Reporting by Agnieszka Flak, editing by Louise Heavens)