It is believed Myer is conducting an investigation into how Mr Flanagan managed to pass an apparently thorough background check by a reputable executive hiring company and how he managed to succeed in getting the job as Myer's new group general manager of strategy and business development, reporting to Myer chief financial officer Mark Ashby.

Mr Flanagan came with excellent credentials and contacts within the global fashion industry. The executive recruitment company is also investigating Mr Flanagan and his extensive CV, which claimed he had also worked for British retail giant Tesco and US supermarket powerhouse Walmart.

Last week Myer also announced it had hired executives from Burberry and Woolworths as part of a renewal of its senior executive ranks and gathering possible contenders to one day replace Mr Brookes at the top.

A statement provided to Fairfax Media this morning from Zara's parent company Inditex said: ''Group Zara Australia, the affiliated company of the Inditex Group in Australia, would like to clarify that Mr Andrew Flanagan was not part and has never been employed by the company as reported recently.

''He has not held the position of managing director and vice president for Asia Pacific.''