Fashion

Luxury firms will warily cut prices to boost sales

19 Dec 2024

High-end goods cost 54% more than before Covid. Yet the likes of LVMH refuse to blame lower volumes on more expensive wares. The fact is that rich Chinese consumers care more about savings than status symbols. Sacrificing margins will be an uncomfortable but inevitable strategy.

Shein margin wobble takes bite out of IPO value

14 Nov 2024

The e-commerce giant’s revenue growth slumped in the first half of 2024, and the net margin fell to 2% per The Information. Even if the business recovers, it creates uncertainty that’s compounded by a protectionist US government. Investors may struggle to see the upside.

Burberry buyer would need steel-plated trench coat

6 Nov 2024

Shares in the $4 bln UK luxury group rose after a website reported that Moncler was eyeing a bid. But the returns on offer look low, while boosting the brand will be costly. Possible suitors require deep pockets, and the patience to wait a long time for any kind of payback.

Richemont exits online hell, but heaven is way off

9 Oct 2024

The $70 bln luxury group is offloading its ailing platform YNAP in exchange for a stake in US-listed buyer Mytheresa. Chair Johann Rupert gets rid of a loss-making arm. But the sector’s dubious economics make it hard to see how he winds up with a holding that offsets his blushes.

New consumer CEOs start life in the slow lane

24 Sep 2024

Nike joined Campari, Nestlé and Starbucks in abruptly ditching its boss. There’s plenty of scope for the new CEOs to remedy their predecessors’ missteps. But a common thread at the four groups is slowing sales amid consumer weakness, making the turnaround jobs much tougher.

China-EU trade spat’s next swipe may hit LVMH

23 Sep 2024

Beijing is weighing up retaliating against EU tariffs on electric cars. Targeting the French luxury giant and its rivals would cause minimal strategic pain and hit Paris rather than Berlin. Higher consumption taxes, rather than import duties, could also fit with domestic reforms.

Luxury’s legal pain is new threat to valuations

20 Aug 2024

Italian prosecutors allege sweatshop-like worker conditions at subcontractors of houses like LVMH’s Dior. That’s a bad look after recent luxury price rises. But if the sector has to hike costs to improve its supply chains, investors may find a new reason to mark valuations down.

Rose-colored Ray-Bans shade brand rehab realities

26 Jul 2024

EssilorLuxottica is paying $1.5 bln for Supreme, whose cachet suffered under Vans owner VF. Streetwear strays from the buyer’s eyewear expertise and the imputed return on capital looks modest. American Apparel also serves as one of many cautionary tales on fashion after it frays.

Meta stake may blur vision for Ray-Ban maker

18 Jul 2024

The $1.2 trln tech giant may buy 5% of eyewear group EssilorLuxottica. It’s a show of confidence in the companies’ smart glasses partnership. But the investment could complicate the Paris-listed firm’s governance and limit its options for working with rivals like Apple.

Burberry faces a lengthy stay in the bargain bin

15 Jul 2024

Shares in the $3.4 bln UK fashion group fell 17% after it replaced its CEO and suspended its dividend. New boss Joshua Schulman’s plan to refocus on trench coats isn’t certain to work. But Burberry fare’s waning appeal also limits the scope for a deep-pocketed acquirer like LVMH.

Ambani wedding allows rich Indians to flaunt it

12 Jul 2024

Anant Ambani's Mumbai nuptials this week cap seven months of extravagant, star-studded celebrations. For many in the deeply inequitable country, the family’s public display of wealth sparks aspiration, not anger. Unlike in China, officials are happy for them to show it off.

Shein maps out how to charm the world in India

5 Jul 2024

The $63 bln fast fashion giant is relaunching four years after it was banned, this time in an alliance with Mukesh Ambani's Reliance. If Shein can claw its way back into a country that aggressively curtailed Chinese interests, partnerships may be the way forward elsewhere too.

Shein would lose all its shine in a Hong Kong IPO

2 Jul 2024

The $63 bln online retailer may debut in the Asian hub if its plan to list in London fails, per the FT. Not only would that confirm its failure to thread the needle between its Western markets and its Chinese roots. It would result in a slashed valuation and orphan-stock status.

Permira has many motives to kill its Golden Goose

19 Jun 2024

The sneaker brand blamed Europe’s political uncertainty for pausing its $1.9 bln listing. Yet a sluggish luxury market and slower growth had already forced it to scale back its price ambitions. For the private equity shop, avoiding a repeat of Dr. Martens’ IPO flop is paramount.

A Shein London IPO would require careful stitching

3 Jun 2024

The fashion giant could file to go public in the city this week after its New York listing hit a snag, per Sky News. Its Plan B could yet unravel: UK lawmakers are seeking greater scrutiny of the China-founded firm, last valued at $66 bln. A Plan C may be necessary.

Inditex’s golden era is coming to an end

3 May 2024

Asian disruptor Shein is threatening the $142 bln Zara owner’s fast-fashion crown with ultra-cheap wares. Dismissing the risk may threaten its market share. To protect the Spanish giant’s business, CEO Óscar García Maceiras has plenty of cash but no obvious M&A solution.

Global retailers are headed for Shein reckoning

30 Apr 2024

Zara owner Inditex, H&M and other apparel giants are holding ground against the Asian fast-fashion upstart. However, AlixPartners’ retail expert Matt Clark argues in this Exchange podcast that Shein’s focus on garment quality could threaten the dominance of pricier rivals.

How one firm made child’s play of tricky M&A games

24 Apr 2024

Imagine buying a company without tedious negotiations, rival bids or pricey premiums. A Saudi investor pulled it off by snapping up enough shares to gain control of US retailer The Children’s Place. The feat will be hard to replicate, but there’s now a model for deal masterminds.

Time for Kering’s king to consider a step back

24 Apr 2024

François-Henri Pinault, heir to the family fortune, has been at the helm of the 40 bln euro French luxury conglomerate for nearly 20 years. With returns shrinking and as flagship brand Gucci struggles, Kering may benefit from fresh blood – and possibly a new CEO.

Kate Spade deal veto is lucky dip for trustbusters

23 Apr 2024

US competition cops want to stop Tapestry, owner of the handbag brand, from buying rival Capri. The $8.5 bln merger is a tempting target: well-known products, few political issues, and none of Big Tech’s mighty resources. That offers a chance to road-test novel legal theories.