Steimatzky Group CEO Iris Barel will be eligible for a $2 million bonus, if Markstone Capital Partners Group LLC sells the bookseller to Arledan Investments Ltd. (which owns Keter Publishing House Ltd.) and office supplies retailer Kravitz Ltd.
Sources inform ''Globes'' that, under Barel's 2006 contract with Markstone, when she was appointed CEO of Steimatzky, she will be eligible for a bonus if the bookseller is sold. If Arledan and Kravitz buy Steimatzky, after completing the due diligence, she will receive the bonus. The sources added Barel's gross salary is more than NIS 100,000 a month, the highest in the industry, and high given that the company has been losing money for years.
Sources in the book business say other Steimatzky executives also receive high salaries. Once source said, "The financial echelon there receives conditions that are very high relative to the size of the company."
A Steimatzky spokesman declined to comment on the matter. However, sources familiar with the company said that its expenses were 45.4% of revenue, and that Barel's salary was 10-25% less than the figure mentioned. They said that Steimatzky's general and administrative expenses, including the CEO's salary, were less than NIS 5 million a year.
As for Barel's bonus in the event of a sale, the sources said that this was part of her first contract with Markstone.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 1, 2014
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