PARIS, July 19 Reuters Burberry39;s new boss Joshua Schulman faces an immediate strategy dilemma.

On Monday, the former head of Coach was appointed to replace Jonathan Akeroyd, becoming the fourth CEO of the 2.6 billion pounds 3.36 billion British fashion house in 10 years.

Chairman Gerry Murphy vowed on the same day to continue Burberry39;s upmarket push to compete with upper tier European luxury labels including Louis Vuitton, Chanel and Dior.

The message disappointed those looking for stronger reassurance the maker of iconic tartan trench coats will be able to reverse years of underperformance, with some expecting Schulman to focus on lower priced products. Shares were trading at 722 pence by 0830 GMT on Friday, down around 19 since before the announcement.

In a call with journalists on Monday, Murphy described the abrupt top management shuffle as part of a nudge of the tiller and adjustment rather than a fundamental change of strategy.

The label39;s struggles to reignite sales underscore the challenge of building new expectations around historic brands especially when inflationhit shoppers are less inclined to browse stores, as seen at larger rival Gucci, owned by the Kering conglomerate.

Burberry is a case in point. Under Marco Gobbetti, who ran the group between 2017 and 2021 and hired designer Riccardo Tisci, the company had started to focus on trying to elevate its products to the top end of luxury fashion, without much financial success.

Outgoing CEO…