PARIS – Christian Louboutin, the high-priced stiletto brand known for shoe red soles, is selling a 24% stake to the Agnelli family-owned investment firm in Italy, in a contract that values the French company at 2.3 billion euros, equivalent to $ 2.73 billion.
Exor EXO 5.09%
NV, controlled by the heirs of businessman Gianni Agnelli, will pay € 541 million for the pledge in Christian Louboutin, the two companies said Monday. The brand is based in Paris and has 150 boutiques worldwide.
The agreement includes a capital of one of the most recognizable names in luxury clothing to expand its work, especially in China. For Exor, the investment is part of an effort to grow in luxury products, a spokesman said. The company, led by John Elkann, grandson of Mr. Agnelli, is also a major shareholder in luxury sports car company Ferrari NV. Exor’s biggest hold is the automotive giant Stellantis NV, which owns Fiat and Peugeot among other brands.
Franco-Egyptian designer Christian Louboutin founded his brand named Paris in 1991 with a small salon. He quickly drew a famous clientele for his stilettos that included actresses Sarah Jessica Parker and Gwyneth Paltrow.
The investment is the first time a public valuation has been linked to Christian Louboutin, proving that it is one of the largest high-end brands still built by luxury collections such as LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE no Kering SA,
Gucci parent. LVMH earlier this year showed the biggest-ever deal in the luxury industry with the $ 15.8 billion purchase of American jeweler Tiffany & Co.
“I have honored Christian talent in creating one of the best independent global luxury brands in the world,” Mr Elkann said.
Christian Louboutin has expanded over the years to other product areas from menswear to handbags. But the soul of the brand is still very red. As Christian Louboutin has grown, he has implemented legal fights to protect his distinctive color from imitators. The U.S. federal appellate court ruled in 2012 that the company was eligible for trademark protection for the color – known as the China Red brand – if used directly on the same. But the court rejected an attempt to bar Yves Saint Laurent from selling a monochrome red shoe.
The European Court of Justice ruled in 2018 that the color could be protected in the European Union. That decision led to a Dutch court ruling that cobbler Van Haren could not make a red shoe.
The investment comes as Exor has sought to use its expertise in Ferrari and Mr. Elkann connections to expand in luxury products. In December, Exor and Hermès, the French luxury handbag company, merged money in Shang Xia, a Chinese luxury goods company. Exor invested € 80 million as part of the deal.
Write to Matthew Dalton at [email protected]
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