What Australian retail pays its leaders · free download
FY27 Executive Search Salary Guide
The FY27 Executive Search Salary Guide is the definitive benchmark for executive pay in Australian retail and ecommerce. It covers every leadership seat from CEO to Head-of, plus chair and NED fees, at every revenue tier from under $10m to $10bn+, built from the audited remuneration reports of ASX-listed retailers, the lodged accounts of leading private and global brands, and Revere's own placement data. Use it to benchmark a role, shape an offer, or plan your next move.
Download the guide free ↓The headlines
- A quarter of ASX retail CEOs turned over this year, and 71% of their replacements were hired cheaper than the person they replaced. That changes the next negotiation, on both sides of the table.
- There's no private discount. Private and global brands pay in line with listed peers at the same revenue, and the private market's biggest leadership bill just hit $10.5m.
- Founder-CEOs take roughly half the salary of a hired CEO. Benchmark against one and the expensive mistakes run in both directions.
- Bonus scheme paid zero? Many executives got paid anyway. Boards found other routes: one-off awards, retention bonuses, even a $2.0m consulting fee.
- Curious on what salary you can expect from a Board appointment? We listed fees by revenue tier.
FY27 edition · 16 pages
The executive year at a glance
~25%
CEO attrition across ASX-listed retailers this year
71%
Of new CEO hires came in cheaper than their predecessor
$10.5m
The private market's biggest leadership bill, up 14% in a year
$950K
The top board chair fee in Australian retail
The year in five findings
Growth on paper, not in the till
Turnover rose ~3% in real terms, but population and groceries did the legwork. Per shopper, spending barely moved, and four rate hikes since February have it going backwards.
A quarter of CEOs turned over
Almost 25% attrition at CEO level in ASX-listed retail, with 71% of new hires coming in cheaper than their predecessor, largely through internal promotion.
The big end rose; the rest froze
CEO packages at the $10bn+ mark rose 10–18% as old share grants finally paid out. Below that, salaries were frozen almost everywhere.
Bonuses paid; equity didn't
Two in three ASX retailers still paid an executive bonus, but most share plans missed their hurdles. An incentive that actually pays is still the cheapest differentiator in acquiring talent at this level.
Boards paid through the side door
Where bonus schemes paid zero, one-off awards, retention bonuses and consulting fees appeared, typically worth 25–50% of salary. One board pays its executive deputy chair $2.0m under a consulting agreement.
CEO & Managing Director
CEO pay, from startup to mega-cap.
| Role (revenue) | Base | Total package | FY26 trend |
|---|---|---|---|
| CEO — $10bn+ | $1.6–2.6m | $2.9–8.3m | +10–18% |
| CEO — $1–10bn | $1.2–2.2m | $1.0–3.3m | Frozen |
| CEO — $300m–1bn | $0.8–2.4m | $0.9–2.5m | Mixed |
| CEO — $100–300m | $0.5–0.8m | $0.5–1.0m | Flat |
| CEO — $50–100m | $450–600K | + equity | — |
| CEO — $10–50m | $350–450K | + STI | — |
| CEO — under $10m | ~$300K | — | — |
| Founder-CEO, 30%+ stake | ~$500K | Dividends do the work | Flat at any revenue |
| Founder-CEO, diluted (~10–15%) | $850K–1.0m | Prices like a hired CEO | — |
Listed figures are statutory disclosures; private-market figures are benchmark ranges. All figures AUD. Sydney typically prices the top of each range, Queensland 5–10% under. The full guide covers every other seat the same way.
Hiring? Here's what the data suggests
Bid against what they banked, not the paper
Two lean payout years mean the statutory package overstates what most executives actually took home. A strong, certain base now beats a bigger number on paper.
There's no private discount
Private and global brands pay in line with listed peers at the same revenue. Benchmark below that and the shortlist thins fast.
Buy the remit, not the title
A $15m brand's "COO" is Head-of money; a $100m COO is a $300K+ chair. The expensive mistakes run in both directions.
Structure is the cheap lever
Only 68% of Australian executives have any performance pay, the lowest in Asia-Pacific. A believable bonus differentiates an offer for far less than base ever will.
Don't benchmark against a founder
Founder-CEOs take roughly half the salary of a professional CEO at comparable revenue. Stepping back from your own chair? Budget the full professional rate for your revenue, not your own salary.
Inside the guide
Every leadership seat, every revenue tier.
- CEO & Managing Director
- CFO & senior finance
- COO, operations & GM
- CMO & marketing
- The wider leadership table: people, commercial, tech and supply chain
- What ASX retail boards pay: chair & NED fees
- Private & PE board fees
- Divisional MDs at the major groups
Compiled from FY26 remuneration reports of ASX-listed retailers; ASIC-lodged accounts of private and global brands; the AICD Director Remuneration Report 2025; ABS retail trade data, Deloitte Access Economics and the RBA; and Revere placement data along with 2026 industry surveys. General guidance, not remuneration advice. For personalised benchmarking, start at executive search.
Download the free FY27 Executive Salary Guide for Australian retail and ecommerce: 16 pages of executive salary benchmarks, from CEO pay to chair and NED board fees, at every revenue tier.
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