Tag: St John

  • Lanvin Group Narrows First-Half Loss to €34.6 Million as Store Closures Bite

    Lanvin Group Narrows First-Half Loss to €34.6 Million as Store Closures Bite

    Shanghai-based Lanvin Group narrowed its first-half adjusted EBITDA loss to €34.6 million as store closures and restructuring outpaced a 12.9 per cent revenue drop to €100.8 million.

    The New York-listed luxury group cut its adjusted EBITDA loss from €52.2 million a year earlier, achieving its first period since listing where operating cuts exceeded top-line decline. The prior-year base excludes Italian tailor Caruso, which the company sold in February to Abu Dhabi-backed MondeVita.

    Management closed 23 directly operated stores during the six months to June 30, bringing its active boutique network down to 151 sites. Over the past 18 months, the company has eliminated 74 stores from a peak of 225, cutting its physical footprint by a third to curb overhead.

    Mixed fortunes across four fashion houses

    St John overtook the namesake maison to become the group’s largest revenue contributor, generating €35.5 million. While that represented a 10.5 per cent decline in euros, sales fell roughly 5 per cent in US dollars, helped by a 31 per cent jump in e-commerce. Chief commercial officer Mandy West, promoted in March, will roll out two capsule collections during the second half.

    Austrian skinwear label Wolford delivered €31.0 million, down 6 per cent. Direct-to-consumer sales slipped 2 per cent while e-commerce expanded 22 per cent, lifting gross margin four percentage points to 60 per cent following the resolution of earlier supply chain bottlenecks. Marco Pozzo took over leadership of the brand in February.

    Revenue at flagship house Lanvin slid 17.9 per cent to €22.9 million, making it the group’s third-largest unit. Barbara Werschine took charge as chief executive in May following stints at Hermès and Eric Bompard, while designer Peter Copping presented his winter 2026 collection in Paris. Footwear brand Sergio Rossi remained the weakest unit, tumbling 28.6 per cent to €10.9 million after artistic director Paul Andrew departed in January and the business phased out third-party manufacturing contracts.

    Asset-light transition across global operations

    Chinese luxury groups that expanded through European acquisitions have spent the past two years paring down overhead to adjust to weaker global wholesale demand. Greater China generated 8.1 per cent of Lanvin Group’s sales last year, leaving the company heavily exposed to European and American department store channels where foot traffic has softened. Trimming company-owned real estate while shifting brands toward licensing mirrors the defensive posture adopted by mid-tier European fashion houses.

    Chairman Zhen Huang expects the broader corporate transformation to wrap up before the end of the year. The group is now preparing second-half wholesale deliveries and expanding asset-light franchise partnerships across Sergio Rossi and Lanvin.

  • Fosun International acquiring French brand IRO

    Fosun International acquiring French brand IRO

    Chinese fashion retailer Fosun International will reportedly acquire French apparel brand IRO.

    IRO’s founders, brothers Laurent and Arik Bitton, will retain a 40 per cent stake, while Fosun will acquire the 25 per cent shareholding of the Marciano family, founder of the Guess Group, along with the remaining shares, making it the major shareholder.

    The deal, worth about €130 million (US$143.533 million), has been confirmed by a Fosun spokesperson quoted in the Chinese media.

    IRO was founded in Paris in 2004, with a men’s clothing series being added in 2011. Its followers include supermodels and fashion bloggers like Kate Moss, Rosie Huntington, Gigi Hadid and Aimee Song.

    With annual sales of about €60 million, IRO has stores in Paris, New York, London and Rome – all up, seven outlets in France and 25 internationally, including four in the US. It also has more than 40 counters in high-end department stores.

    Fosun has diverse interests covering fashion and retailing, and also owns the French resort group Club Med. The company has invested in many overseas consumer brands, including Greek fashion brand group Folli Follie, American high-end women’s clothing brand St John, Italian high-end custom men’s clothing Caruso, and fashion lifestyle brand Tom Tailor.