Paris Fashion Week: Lanvin expects Chinese connections to deliver sales bounce
Lanvin unveils its latest collection at Paris Fashion Week, but question mark lingers over changes shareholder Fosun will want to make
Lanvin’s latest Chinese shareholder Fosun could help the French couture house’s sales grow tenfold over the next five to six years by opening new doors, its chief executive says.
Nicolas Druz said following Lanvin’s latest catwalk collection on Wednesday that Fosun would boost the label with new cash and by helping it secure prime boutique locations.
Fosun, which has investments stretching from property development to insurance, became the majority shareholder of the struggling 129-year-old French brand last month.
“There are a lot of synergies with other businesses in the Fosun group,” Druz said, citing its digital investments as luxury goods groups seek to ramp up online sales.
Druz said Lanvin could reach at least €1 billion (HK$9.56 billion) in annual sales, from a little over €100 million now, by branching into areas such as hotels and homeware.
Lanvin revenues took a dive after it parted ways with star designer Alber Elbaz in 2015. Even in better times, the couture house never exceeded a peak of €235 million, sources had previously said.
Lanvin, until recently 75 per cent owned by Taiwan-based media magnate Shaw-Lan Wang, does not publish earnings, although Druz confirmed losses of around €30 million in 2017.