Christopher Bailey, the chief executive of Burberry, earned 75% less last year after failing to meet the luxury British brand's 2015 targets.

Bailey took home £1.9 million, down from £7.5m for 2014.

According to Burberry's annual report, while his base salary remained at £1.1m, he missed out on a major bonus because the company's pre-tax profit fell short of "the threshold target set by the remuneration committee at the start of the year".

On top of that, Bailey still received £330,000 in pension payments and £464,000 in benefits and allowances.

He has been criticised by investors of late for holding to roles in the company – he is also the chief creative officer at Burberry. It is thought that his talents lie primarily in design.

Carol Fairweather, the company's chief financial officer, and John Smith, its chief operating officer, also received cuts of 59% and 47% respectively.

The company, best known for its expensive line of trench coats, has been hit by a slowing of the Chinese market, as shoppers in the world's second-biggest economy tighten their belts. China and Hong Kong account for approximately 40% of its sales.

Burberry shares fell 35% in 2015. Full-year profits were also down 7%, while a forecast last month stated that its 2017 performance would be at the bottom of expectations as the "challenging environment for the luxury goods sector" shows no signs of letting up.

Chairman John Peace said:

"Our overall approach to incentive structures for all staff, including senior management, is based on performance.

"When the business does not perform as well, this has an impact on what we pay to our staff. And when the share price falls as it has in the past year, this has a substantial impact on historical share awards".

In March, rumours were rife of an impending takeover at the company. Its market value leapt to over €8 billion, as moves from an as-yet-unknown investor to increase its stake in the iconic clothing company caused a significant share jump.