Fashion

Ray-Ban maker may finally live up to merger vision

24 May 2021

EssilorLuxottica has ditched a power-sharing pact that ushered in the 2018 deal but led to infighting. Axing duplication should allow the 63 bln euro group to deliver long-promised cost savings. Erasing the governance discount to listed peers could unlock 10 bln euros of value.

Capital Calls: Disney misses the mark

13 May 2021

Concise views on global finance: Walt Disney reported nearly 104 million subscribers for its streaming flagship service.

Capital Calls: U.S. CEO pay

12 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance: The median big-company boss is ending up with $13.7 mln for the 2020 pandemic year, a payout that's heading for a record.

Capital Calls: Cellebrite good times

8 Apr 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The Israeli cracker of mobile-phone encryption is going public via a SPAC at a $2.4 billion valuation.

H&M kicks off Europe’s unfashionable China dilemma

25 Mar 2021

The $35 bln Swedish retailer is under sudden attack over an old statement saying it doesn’t source materials from controversial Xinjiang. Many EU companies want both greater access to the giant market and ESG credibility. Beijing will make it choose which is the bigger priority.

Fashion’s supply ignorance is no longer bliss

17 Mar 2021

The U.S. is detaining products containing cotton produced in China’s Xinjiang region over forced-labour concerns. The burden of proof is on the importer, so groups like Inditex and Ralph Lauren need to know the fibre’s origins. Or some goods may fail to reach American shelves.

Capital Calls: New York, Allegro exit

17 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The Big Apple reigns in a new ranking of global cities, but the prize isn’t what it was; shareholders in Polish e-commerce group Allegro sell down early.

Capital Calls: Netflix, ECB, Glass Lewis, Zalando

16 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The streaming service’s password-sharing crackdown twists the knife; the central bank worries about identifying bad loans; the proxy adviser’s sale underscores its place on Wall Street; the online fashion giant’s bold targets.

Capital Calls: T-Mobile US, Ulta Beauty

12 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: The U.S. telecom is benefiting from its merger with SoftBank’s Sprint; the U.S. cosmetics retailer revealed a tidy succession plan, but its business still faces lingering pandemic side-effects.

Capital Calls: McKinsey, Celebrity SPACs

10 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: McKinsey’s new boss isn’t new enough; the SEC tells investors to be careful of celebrities bearing SPACs.

Capital Calls: Exxon, Greensill, Research SPAC

2 Mar 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: U.S. securities regulators take on the oil giant; Investors in even lower-risk funds get nervy about the supply chain finance provider; And a supplier of picks and shovels to the online trading boom gets a blank-check listing.

Capital Calls: Pharma, Volvo delay, Hotels

24 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Big Pharma’s new popularity could give it leverage in Congress; China’s Geely can profit from Volvo IPO delay; and boutique hotels feel the heat.

Capital Calls: Petrobras

19 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Brazil's president becomes Petrobras' activist.

Capital Calls: Third Point, Kraft Heinz/Hormel

11 Feb 2021

Concise views on global finance in the Covid-19 era: Dan Loeb’s hedge fund gets a good start in 2021, while Hormel Foods buys peanuts, but pays anything but.

Corona Capital: Food delivery, Video games

25 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Hedge fund Tiger Global gets a taste for food-delivery investments; and Jagex, developer of fantasy game “RuneScape,” is flipped to Carlyle less than a year after its last sale.

Burberry is entering the M&A danger zone

20 Jan 2021

The UK maker of fancy trench coats performed worse than most peers during the pandemic. Despite some positive signs, investors are attributing little value to CEO Marco Gobbetti’s turnaround plan. A cheap valuation and lack of dominant shareholders could entice cash-rich peers.

Birkenstock buyout calls for heavy buffing

20 Jan 2021

CVC may buy the maker of strappy sandals worn by Hollywood stars and monks. Private equity has a good history with niche footwear brands, but the German group is already well-run. To justify a mooted 4 bln euro price tag, the new owner would have to target luxury-style margins.

Corona Capital: Inflation, Poshmark

14 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Breakingviews panel predicts the end of the free-money era; and Poshmark’s IPO looks overdressed.

Casual-chic fad polishes Permira’s Dr. Martens bet

11 Jan 2021

The buyout firm will list the UK bootmaker after a seven-year turnaround. The IPO will also benefit from rising demand for informal wear, as workers stay home. Valued between peer Deckers and Moncler, the punk icon may be worth 3 bln pounds, roughly 10 times Permira’s investment.

Corona Capital: Commercial real estate, IBM

5 Jan 2021

Concise views on the pandemic’s corporate and financial fallout: Commercial office real estate is Zoom’s mirror image; IBM taps former Goldman-exec Gary Cohn.