LONDON: Tuesday, 28 January 2025

THE CHARACTER GROUP PLC

("Character," "Company," "Group")

Designers, developers, and international distributor of toys, games, and giftware

Grant of Option

and

Directorate change  

Grant of Option

On 24 January 2025, the Company granted an option over a total of 30,000 ordinary shares of £0.05 each ("Ordinary Shares") held in treasury to Hamun Shah, its Chief Financial Officer. These options have been granted under the Group's 2017 Share Option Plan at an exercise price of 250 pence per share, being the closing mid-market price at the close of business on 23 January 2025.

Board appointment

The Company is also pleased to announce the promotion and appointment of Hamun Shah to Group Finance Director. He will take up his formal role and join the Main Board on 1 February 2025. From the same date, Joint Managing Director of the Group Kiran Shah will relinquish his Group Finance Director duties and responsibilities to further concentrate on his executive role as Joint Managing Director of the Company.

Hamun (no relation to Kiran Shah) holds a BA (hons) in Accounting and Finance and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1999. He joined Character in March 2024 as Chief Financial Officer and since then, he has had an immediate positive impact on all aspects of the business he has become involved in. Prior to joining the Company, Hamun worked at Prada Group (one of the world's top luxury fashion houses) where, from 2002 he was the UK Financial Controller, then its Group Financial Controller. He was promoted to Group Chief Financial Officer of Church Group (a subsidiary within Prada Group famous for its shoes) in 2009 and subsequently in 2012 he also took up the position as Head of Finance at Prada Retail UK Ltd, reporting respectively to the Church Group Chief Executive Officer and the Prada Group Chief Financial Officer.

Carmel Warren, Non-Executive Chair at Character Group, commented:

"On behalf of my colleagues and all stakeholders I welcome Hamun to the Board. We have already had the opportunity to "road-test" his extensive experience and skill set since he joined the business last year and are confident that, with his energy and ability, he will be an asset to the Board."

"I would also like to take this opportunity to thank Kiran for doing a terrific job combining his Joint Managing Director with the Group  FD duties since 2017. He has been a very safe and reliable pair of hands in the finance role, and we are pleased that, in relinquishing those responsibilities, we are retaining and not losing his important involvement in the management and contribution to the Board and the Group overall."

Other than the  information below, there are no other disclosures required to be made in respect of Hamun Shah under paragraph (g) of Schedule Two of the AIM Rules.

(*resignation notified to, however, yet to be recorded on the Company Registry by, the Registrar of Companies)

Notification and public disclosure of transactions by PDMR:

The notification below is made in accordance with the requirements of the EU Market Abuse Regulation.