MILAN — The year 2024 is shaping up to see intense M&A activity in Italy, while potential investors are atwitter over the prospect of an initial public offering of Golden Goose.
In 2020, private equity fund Permira bought the Italian brand from the Carlyle Europe Buyout fund for a price pegged at 1.28 billion euros. Golden Goose, which achieved much of its success with the Superstar sneaker that offers 400 variations a year, is led by chief executive officer Silvio Campara.
Neither Permira nor Golden Goose have officially commented on the possibility of a listing in Milan in 2024, or on a potential sale. The company has been on an upward trajectory, posting revenues of 421 million euros in the nine months ended Sept. 30, up 19 percent compared with the same period in 2022. Compared with 2021, sales were up 60 percent. Profitability continued to grow, with the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization margin rising to 34.8 percent in the first nine months of 2023.
Following the lackluster debut of Birkenstock on the New York Stock Exchange, when shares declined on opening day, observers are carefully watching Golden Goose. But market sources say the latter’s shareholders aim to emphasize the luxury image of the Italian brand, which also includes apparel and accessories collections, compared to that of the German sandal maker.
Speculation has also been circulating about a possible sale of another sneaker brand, Autry, by the Made in Italy fund, which is managed by Quadrivio and Pambianco and invests in wine, food, beauty, fashion and furniture with brands ranging from 120% Lino and Rosantica to Dondup and GCDS.
Talk is swirling that other brands are under the microscope and could potentially change hands as well.
Italian investment fund FSI took a 41.2 percent stake in Missoni in 2018, while the founding and namesake family continued to have control with 58.8 percent of the shares. Sources say Missoni last year tapped Rothschild to explore a potential sale of the brand, which is designed by Filippo Grazioli and helmed by CEO Livio Proli. A rumor that OTB was eyeing Missoni fizzled quickly. Market sources speculated that an industrial partner could be interested in Missoni’s production and artisanal capabilities. (OTB, which controls Diesel, Jil Sander, Marni, and Maison Margiela, among others, is also eyeing an IPO but more likely in 2025.)
In 2021, private equity giant L Catterton acquired a majority stake in Etro in a deal valued at 500 million euros. Etro closed 2022 with sales of 277 million euros, up 17 percent on 2021, but had a loss of 23.6 million euros, mainly caused by amortizations and extraordinary expenses. That led L Catteron to a recapitalization at the end of last year, injecting 15 million euros into the company with the goal to finance further investments. However, sources say that L Catterton’s spearheading the combination of watches and jewelry distributor Nuova Publitex with the Etro company, which weighed on the bottom line, caused friction with the Etro family, which maintains a minority stake in the brand. Etro is helmed by CEO Fabrizio Cardinali and designed by creative director Marco De Vincenzo.
The future of Trussardi continues to be uncertain, after the company sought creditor protection last year. While there was speculation about potential white knights, including Miroglio, expressing their interest in helping the storied brand, no deal was finalized. The Bergamo, Italy-based 3X Capital, which specializes in company restructurings, had been called to consult with Trussardi’s parent, Italian independent asset management company QuattroR, which took a controlling stake in the Italian fashion brand in 2019.
CEO Sebastian Suhl and creative directors Serhat Işık and Benjamin A. Huseby left the brand last year.
Another storied brand, La Perla, also has been through challenging times, and in November members of the unions Filctem Cgil and Uiltec expressed their “intense concern for the destiny” of the innerwear brand “following the total lack of concrete response” by German businessman Lars Windhorst, the company’s owner via his London-based private equity firm Tennor.
The unions lamented “total financial inconsistency” and “generic and worrying” declarations of job cuts at La Perla’s Bologna, Italy-based plant. The troubled brand has failed to steadily relaunch in recent years, after Tennor, then known as Sapinda, took over the company in 2018. La Perla remains heavily indebted as it logged pre-tax losses of 48.8 million euros on sales of 69.1 million euros in 2022, according to the company’s annual report.
The fate of New Guards Group is also in doubt following the rescue of parent company Farfetch by Coupang, which has agreed to pump $500 million in emergency funding into the company as part of a “pre-pack” administration process. New Guards Group is home to 10 international brands, which include Marcelo Burlon County of Milan, Palm Angels, Unravel Project, Heron Preston, Alanui, Peggy Gou, Ambush and There Was One. It is also the licensee of Off-White and is the European partner of Reebok.
As reported, Capri contemplated a Versace and Jimmy Choo IPO before the deal to be acquired by Tapestry was struck, but so far there has been no additional sign of a spinoff. Time will tell how Versace will fit into the major American group which, when the acquisition is completed, will also own Michael Kors, Coach, Stuart Weitzman and Kate Spade.
