Bloomberg insists: for Prada, Versace is just around the corner. The closing is expected within this month for 1.5 billion euro. Talks are moving forward after due diligence found no risks, and people are already thinking about the future of Donatella Versace and speculating on Prada’s early moves.
The coup for Versace is ready
Co-owner and designer, Miuccia Prada, and the group’s CEO, Andrea Guerra, have tried to curb speculation about a deal with Capri Holdings for Versace (and perhaps Jimmy Choo). But Bloomberg insists, hinting that the negotiations would be going smoothly. Even the €1.5 billion price tag for the Versace brand alone was not an obstacle. The sale could be sealed (and announced) within this month. Clearly, the timing and valuation could change, and the deal could still blow up, Bloomberg’s anonymous sources added. Prada took weeks to evaluate Versace with its consultants, gaining exclusive access to financial and sales data last month. According to UBS, Prada’s minimalist aesthetic and Versace’s maximalist aesthetic “are polar opposites” and would not run the risk of cannibalizing each other.
The questions
Chinese website Ladymax goes further, already questioning the future that awaits Donatella Versace, creative director of the brand that bears her surname. Also, the source ponders whether Dario Vitale, former creative director of Miu Miu, will really take over her role at Versace. It wonders if Prada plans to change the brand’s stylistic direction, and whether the group will be able to relaunch Versace, given what has happened previously with the other acquisitions made by Prada: Car Shoe, Church’s and, above all, Jil Sander.
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