Richemont, which reports first-quarter results on July 16, has been in the headlines lately. There was the top management shuffle at the start of July, which installed new CEOs at key brands Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels amid mounting questions about succession planning at the group tightly controlled by 74-year-old billionaire Johann Rupert. The shuffle came on the heels of the revelation that Bernard Arnault, LVMH chairman who has long sought to get his hands on Cartier, has built a personal stake in Richemont. Then there’s the fate of Yoox Net-a-Porter: after the implosion of a deal to spin off the loss-making fashion e-tailer in a joint venture with Farfetch, a new sale has been said to be imminent for months, with Mytheresa among the suitors. What’s the most we can hope for on Tuesday? Probably not much on succession or Arnault, beyond Rupert reaffirming his desire to keep Richemont independent. But if a YNAP deal really is ready to go, this would be one moment to pull the trigger.
Burberry’s first-quarter results on July 19 are probably not going to be pretty. The British luxury stalwart has tried to push upmarket. But consumers have not taken to designer Daniel Lee’s attempts to elevate Burberry’s aesthetic, nor have they responded well to steep price hikes. At this point, it’s safe to say the revamp has stalled. Who’s to blame: The creative director? The CEO? It’s probably a combination of both, though only the latter gets to talk to analysts on Friday. In a recent column for BoF, Luca Solca argues that Burberry’s strategy is ultimately at fault, and that the trench coat maker should abandon its upmarket aspirations and reposition itself as Britain’s answer to Coach. The American leather goods giant has proven there’s still plenty of money to be made in the middle of the market. And if the elevation push continues to falter, what other choice does Burberry have?
Neither Richemont not Burberry has much of a presence on Amazon, aside from some fragrance and sunglasses (though the e-commerce giant will gladly suggest Cartier knockoffs if you search for the brand). Perhaps that will someday change, now that Amazon is joining forces with Saks and Neiman Marcus. But the company’s latest attempt to become a luxury player will have to wait; this week’s Prime Day, which runs July 16 and 17, is all about modest deals on modestly priced apparel and cosmetics (last year, the average Prime Day discount on apparel was 12 percent, according to Adobe). Amazon has made some interesting fashion moves recently, including the Saks deal and announcing plans for a discount store to counter Shein and Temu. Neither will be a factor this week, however, where the biggest question is whether the buy now, pay later boom will continue to fuel record spending.
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