Roberto Cavalli is an Italian fashion brand founded in the ’70s by the Florentine eponymous designer.
His work with his wife Eva contributed to the ’90s Made in Italy boom.
In 2002 the brand turns the prestigious bar Giacosa in Florence, where the Negroni cocktail was invented, into the first Cavalli Café.
With their flamboyant lifestyle the Eva and Roberto are hosts of some of the most exclusive parties during the Cannes film festival on their yacht.
They dress the likes of Beyoncé and JLo among many other celebrities.
In 2015 the Cavalli family sells the majority stake to Clessidra, an Italian private equity fund.
In just 4 years since the acquisition the company:
– changed 2 CEOs
– saw Clessidra changing ownership
– changed 2 Creative Directors
– was put on sale recently by Clessidra
– is presently without Creative Director
– shut down several stores and laid off employees
– moved the HQ from Florence to Milan and back
– shut down the Giacosa café, an institution in Florence
This is just one of many examples we could make.
Always the same unhappy ending.
So: why equity funds are still interested in fashion when they do not have a long term approach?
Dear equity funds, why bother?
#fashion #business #equityfund
