Reuters
LVMH said on Monday it has acquired 80 percent of Italian luxury cashmere clothing brand Loro Piana for 2 billion euros ($2.57 billion), boosting the French group’s presence in high-end handcrafted products popular with Asian buyers.
The deal gives Loro Piana an enterprise value of 2.7 billion euros, or more than 3.8 times the company’s expected 2013 sales of 700 million euros.
Loro Piana, which is also an integrated manufacturer of fine yarns, has been enjoying average annual sales growth of 17 percent over the past three years, which analysts said would help make up for slower growth at other LVMH brands such as Louis Vuitton.
“The price is steep but it is a fairly unique business,” said Paul Swinand, analyst at market research house Morningstar.