The separation of Ynap from the Richemont group would create substantial value for the shareholders of the Swiss group. Analysts have been convinced of this for some time, but above all the funds and especially the activists, Third Point primarily. The leaders of the luxury group, which has brands such as Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels in its portfolio, must have come to terms with this, and three years after the acquisition of 100% of Yoox Net-A-Porter, they announce ongoing negotiations with Farfetch, which could lead the Swiss to no longer be the majority shareholder of the company. The stock market rewarded the choice with a 10% jump by Richemont, also thanks to better than expected results for the quarter.
The push of activist funds
A similar twist was in the air. On the other hand, the entry of Dan Loeb’s Third Point shareholder fund into the Richemont shareholding structure could only herald pressure on management to increase the profitability of the group through the divestment of unprofitable businesses. The same strategy had been adopted by the American fund after joining Nestlé: in that case a 34-page document was even released, summarizing the group’s critical issues.
Johann Rupert himself, president of Richemont, had declared at the annual meeting in September that “after years of absorbing heavy investments, we are now finally seeing others eager to share the evolving platforms”, referring to the brands of Ynap. But he wanted to clarify now: «This is not at all a response to the pressure of activists, we started this project a long time ago. Maybe some of them were listening and reading carefully, so they invested and made money. “
Third Point, which was also joined by the historic shareholder Artisan Partners, broke down an open door, but there are those who bet that it will not stop at the Ynap problem. The tycoon born in Sud Africa in fact, it controls the group with a 9.1% stake (of category B shares), with a voting right equal to 50%, to which is added a package of category A shares. The Dan Loeb fund could have precisely this node as its next objective in order to make the company more contestable.
The fate of Ynap
Returning to the fashion and luxury e-commerce group, born in Italy from an idea of Federico Marchetti (who left the presidency a few months ago), negotiations were announced yesterday at an advanced stage with Farfetch, a company active in the online sales of London-based luxury, which would be ready to take over a minority stake. This would be just the first move in a strategy that aims to make Ynap an independent e-commerce platform. So much so that, according to what was declared yesterday by the management of Richemont, there would be other investors interested in entering the capital, even among the big luxury brands.