New research reveals persistent lack of ethnic diversity in retailer leadership teams.
- Over a third of retailers maintain exclusively white boards, highlighting minimal progress.
- Ethnic minority representation on boards sees a modest rise, yet challenges remain.
- Gender diversity improves, but disparities persist in senior management roles.
- Retailers are treating diversity and inclusion as priorities, but wider impact needed.
New findings from the British Retail Consortium (BRC) and MBS Group underscore the enduring challenge of ethnic diversity in retail leadership. A significant portion of retailers, particularly smaller firms, are noted to have all-white boards. Additionally, over 50% of executive committees lack any ethnic diversity, suggesting minimal transformative changes since last year.
Despite this, there has been some progress with ethnic minority leaders on boards nearly tripling from 4.5% in 2021 to 12% in 2024. Helen Dickinson, chief executive of the BRC, comments that ‘inclusion is the nut the industry still needs to crack.’ The research covered a broad spectrum of diversity factors, including gender, ethnicity, and social mobility, yet lacks specific data for the fashion sector.
Meanwhile, a majority of retailers, around 98%, have implemented coordinated diversity and inclusion strategies. Elliott Goldstein from The MBS Group acknowledges significant advancements, yet emphasizes the need for continued efforts across all levels of the workplace. It’s the fourth iteration of this survey, and while retailers increasingly see diversity as crucial, many smaller companies risk sidelining it amid challenging business landscapes.
Gender diversity shows progress as women now hold 42.3% of board-level positions, a rise from 32.6% in 2021. However, disparities linger as women are more often in junior or middle management roles, whereas senior positions remain male-dominated. Drapers’ research into FTSE-listed fashion retail businesses found 37% of board roles occupied by women as of February 2024.
Additional findings indicate 11% of retailers have at least one senior leader with a disability, 67% have an LGBTQ+ senior leader, and 70% have leaders demonstrating social mobility. However, despite these initiatives, feelings of inclusion are reportedly low among certain demographics, particularly individuals identifying as black, African, or Caribbean, and those aged 24 to 34.
Although there are strides in diversity, greater inclusion efforts are essential for meaningful impact.