Business of Luxury The Italian fashion house unveils sweeping restructuring that includes shredding a quarter of its workforce
Fast-growing sales in China will return the industry to growth next year, while the decline in 2009 will be less severe than expected, according to a Bain & Co study
Italian designer label Versace is pulling out of Japan after nearly 30 years in the country – highlighting the depth of the slump in the world’s largest luxury markets
A slowdown in Japan, coupled with weak spending in the US and Europe is forcing luxury goods companies to reassess their strategies. Luxury brands are now shifting their hopes from Japan, which once accounted for 40 per cent of global spending on luxury, to emerging markets such as China, India and Russia. In this video series, Vanessa Friedman, the FT’s fashion editor, interviews CEOs of luxury brands to explore these issues.
Part I: The luxury business shifts its gaze to emerging markets
Part II: Ermenegildo Zegna, Ermenegildo Zegna Group chief. Kim Winser, Aquascutum chief
Part III: Michael Kowalski, chairman and chief of Tiffany. Patrizio di Marco, Bottega Veneta chief. Marco Bizzarri, Stella McCartney chief
Part IV: Toni Belloni, LVMH Group managing director
Martin Clarke, head of consumer at Permira Advisers
The ingredients for consolidation are there but talk of deals has dried up, perhaps understandably given fashion’s reputation for egos and feuds
Sales in the $15bn-$30bn luxury market fell 10 per cent in 2008 and are forecast to drop another 7 per cent this year
A group of fashion insiders that have developed social networks through their sense of style are joining the high street, seen by some to be the next evolution of niche retailing, writes Vanessa Friedman
Chief admits industry was left vulnerable and plans to take more conservative view in the future rather than trying to maximise production
Discounting can exact a terrible price, as the imminent bankruptcy of General Motors shows. The company was the king of price-discounting even in the good times. But luxury and premium brands have grown so much that their owners cannot choose from a menu of cutting costs, output or prices. All are required, says John Gapper
