THE LAST FRONTIER OF LUXURY? HAM. AND PRADA OPENS THE PASTRY SHOP IN HONG KONG
Has the umbrella revolution affected sales of Prada handbags in Hong Kong? No fear. The Milanese maison, which also underlined on the occasion of the quarterly that "we are witnessing a repositioning of the luxury market still in progress", has already studied the appropriate countermeasures: soon in the heart of the Victoria District, the financial heart of the former British colony, the “Pasticceria Marchesi” will open, a clone of the Milanese restaurant on Corso Magenta purchased by Patrizio Bertelli and Miuccia Prada after losing the battle with Arnault of Lvmh for the Cova control, the historic café in via Montenapoleone.
At the time, just over a year ago, it seemed more like a spite in the eternal quarrel with the patron of Lvmh: the revived Parisian Napoleon of big finance had reconquered the inn opened in the heart of Milan by a former grenadier of the emperor, then ennobled from the meetings held there by the insurgent command during the Five Days. Bertelli, out of spite, had acquired Marchesi, the old pastry shop on the ground floor of the house where Giuditta Meregalli lived in the mid-nineteenth century, the Milanese laundress who had given no less than four children to Field Marshal Radetzsky whom she looked after in her old age.
But behind the whims there is an intuition: the new frontier of luxury passes through food. And made in Italy, even more than in fashion, promises to dominate. Also thanks to the propellant of Expo 2015. Thus, on Christmas Eve, the intersections between the luxury industry and Italian food multiply. Not only Prada, which will open "Pasticceria Marchesi" in Tokyo and Dubai as well as in Hong Kong, but also other famous names that prompted the Financial Times to speak of a "new frontier for the luxury industry".
Diesel's Renzo Rosso bought BioNatura, an organic food chain while Brunello Cucinelli expanded the business of "his" village of Solomeo to the production of olive oil. Campo del Vino, alongside Gaetano Marzotto (who owns the Ca del Bosco sparkling wine), the commitment of Ferragamo (“Il Borgo” and Castiglion del Bosco labels) and Sandro Veronesi, the owner of Calzedonna, who has opened a chain of shops with the “Signorvino” brand.
These are just a few examples of a trend that promises to grow. Just a fad or an extension of the fashion boom? “The trend and the problems are the same as in fashion in the early 266s, starting with the need for a distribution chain up to par and a presence on international markets” Diego Silva of Merrill Lynch explains to the Financial Times. It is not a question of retracing the path of the few giants of the local food industry, such as Ferrero or Barilla. If anything, to focus on the characteristics of our products, in the name of biodiversity. Italy boasts 206 products with a DOC origin label, more than France, its closest rival, which boasts XNUMX.
And this explains how, alongside the Eataly phenomenon, led by the hand of Gianni Tamburi on the US markets, the largest purchase of a private equity has involved food: 300 million euros spent by Charterhouse Capital Partners for the purchase of 80 % of Nuova Castelli, the largest exporter of Parmesan, while the Strategic Fund has made its entry into Cremonini to favor its exposure on international markets.
"The interest of international operators in Italian food - is the thesis of Francesco Moccagatta of N+1 Syz, an M&A boutique that oversaw the sale of Pernigotti - is linked to the new orientations of Chinese consumption, and to the greater attention for health and quality of life in the USA and in Europe”. Without neglecting the fact that it is much less expensive to satisfy one's perception of luxury and well-being by buying a pound of ham than a Prada bag.
