Victoria houghton

BREAKING NEWS: Hamilton & Inches appoints new chief executive

Victoria Houghton takes over from Stephen Paterson as he steps down after 40 years with the Edinburgh jeweller.

Hamilton & Inches has appointed Victoria Houghton as its new chief executive officer, with the board hoping she can double sales for the Edinburgh-based retailer to £20 million in the next five years. 

She takes over from Stephen Paterson who has stepped down after 40 years of service.

She has been a non-executive director for the company since June 2018 and brings a wealth of experience from global luxury retail including working with Q5 Business Management Consultants on a recent business transformation project for Burberry.

During her 20 year career, Ms Houghton spent three years as a buyer for Next, an experience she took into her launching her own business, Ixy Retail, which runs franchised Next stores in Romania.

As CEO at Hamilton & Inches she is charged with leading a new era for Hamilton & Inches, reigniting its rich heritage of holding the Royal Warrant as silversmiths to Her Majesty the Queen for more than 120 years, while introducing a new contemporary style to the brand.

Hamilton & Inches says that Ms Houghton’s appointment is part of a wider strategy to double turnover to £20 million over the next five years. The company’s latest accounts show turnover of £8.7 million for the year ending March 31, 2018, a slight dip from sales of £8.8 million in 2017. Operating profit was more sharply down from £1.1 million in 2017 to £512,000 in 2018.

Along with fine jewellery, Hamilton & Inches is an authorised dealer for world-leading brands including Patek Philippe and Rolex.

“Houghton is the perfect candidate to step into the new role of CEO for Hamilton & Inches,” says chairman of Hamilton & Inches, Peter Lederer. “Houghton’s involvement over the past year has been exceptional and her understanding of global industry trends in retail and unique ability to get to the crux of the issues is impressive. She brings passion, dedication and a fresh approach to deliver the five-year growth strategy for Hamilton & Inches.”

Ms Houghton adds: “I am delighted to be joining Hamilton & Inches as CEO at such an exciting time for the business. I look forward to continuing my work to re-position such an iconic Scottish heritage brand to build market share in the global retail landscape.”

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