Each year, we review the governance trends among retail and apparel companies is through our annual Retail & Apparel Board Index, which examines the board composition and practices of the leading retail and apparel companies in the United States. This year’s index includes data from 105 retail and apparel companies with retail businesses generating at least $1 billion annually.
Some highlights from this year’s index include the following:
- Retail and apparel boards have surpassed the S&P 500 this year in female representation on boards. Ninety percent of retail and apparel boards have at least one woman on the board, compared with 88 percent of S&P 500 boards.
- The time demands on retail and apparel board directors continue to grow. Boards now are meeting eight times a year on average, compared with 7.5 meetings in 2007.
- Director compensation continues to rise. The average cash retainer paid to directors in 2008 has increased by 11 percent over last year to $56,700 and by more than 30 percent since 2006.
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