How Much is That Prada Share in the Window?
Yep, big fashion houses spend big money, it’s true. But it’s the big debt that seems to worry most of the big honchos steering the ship. The latest rumour on the block is that Prada plans to sell a share of the company to offset their debt — said to be hovering around $1.5 Billion. Yikes. Even for Muccia, that’s a lot of moola. According to Fashionista, the New York Daily News alluded to the fact that Richemont (a luxury company based in Switzerland) who own Montblanc and Cartier, is angling to get a piece of the Prada action. Both sides deny, but so did both sides when Valentino was sold from one owner to another. LVMH is a little nervous at this point as well, because if and when Richemont does buy some of the pie, they would become a worthy rival (they’re already the second largest luxury group in the world!). Broke designers and design houses are not news by any stretch after the past year, what with Christian Lacroix filing for bankruptcy and still not able to find a buyer, and Escada doing the same. Muccia is a smart cookie, though, so if anyone can pull the house out of a hole like that, it’s a good, tough Italian woman like her.