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Originally Posted by dannyp
Wonder what will ultimately happen here. Worse than being ingested by another conglomerate would be if a PE backer sees a quick buck here.
Could see it ultimately being acquired by LVMH, if it wants to build a watch portfolio to compete with Richemont and Swatch. Plus UN is avant-garde enough to fit the company's portfolio.
Swatch would have made sense but for the fact that one of GP's claims to fame is the movements provided to others, and Swatch is already the biggest in that field by far.
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The problem with an acquisition is that Kering pulled a Richemont and consolidated GP and UN to share production facilities (along with making watches for Gucci) so the brands can't stand or be sold on their own. They're stuck, Kering couldn't sell one without the other and no one wants to buy and turn around two dying brands at the same time. Either they need to figure out a strategy to differentiate and grow both together, invest in the infrastructure to make them both independent enough to be sold, or pick one to turnaround and take the other out back and shoot it. I don't think they have the money for #2 or the balls for #3, they're going to make a go of #1 cause ego.