Furniture retailer Made.com is handing out shares in the company to all staff below senior management level, after achieving £1 billion sales since it launched a decade ago.
The company’s chief executive, Philippe Chainieux, said the decision has been made in response to “extremely strong” sales throughout 2020, due to the shift to working from home.
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Some 650 staff will receive an equal number of shares in the organisation. A spokesperson for the firm said the value of the shares will depend on any future company valuation, but “probably equivalent to six months’ pay for the typical employee in a showroom, customer service or warehouse”.
Chainieux said: “I have been delighted by the way in which everyone at Made has pulled together as a team during this unprecedented time.
“There have been many challenges for the retail sector this year, but I am proud to say that thanks to the structure of our business and the tireless efforts of our people, we have emerged from the crisis in a very strong position.
“The share options are a way of saying ‘thank you’ to colleagues for their past efforts but also a way to give them a stake in the exciting future we see for our brand.”
All Made staff apart from senior management will receive the same number of share options which will be vested in equal tranches over the next three years.
The company has enjoyed a successful year, with this year’s Black Friday seeing its UK sales double year-on-year.
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There was a 200% increase in desk sales following the order to work from home and a 170% uplift in sofa bed sales after the government said “Christmas bubbles” of three households could form.
“Whilst there will undoubtedly be a return to the office in due course, we believe the ability and requirement to work from home on a part week basis will remain,” Chainieux said.
