Retail in Asia

In Trends

Richemont invites rivals LVMH, Kering to join forces online

Cartier-owner Richemont has invited luxury arch-rivals LVMH and Kering among other peers to invest in the newly combined Yoox/Net-a-Porter online fashion retailer, the Swiss group said last week.

Richemont agreed in March to sell its upmarket internet retailer Net-a-Porter (NAP) to Italy’s Yoox in an all-share deal that created an industry leader in the booming online luxury market, with combined sales of EUR1.3 billion (USD1.4 billion).

Consolidation and alliances among online luxury retailers are accelerating as the battle for consumers is shifting quickly from the high street to the Internet. Yoox and Richemont, when they announced the merger, said they would be looking for another luxury goods investor to back the new company.

(Source: CNBC)