Tod’s will delist from the Milan stock exchange at the end of the day on May 8. This decision comes as L Catterton, an investment vehicle of the LVMH group, has declared that it has obtained sufficient shares in the Italian shoemaker through a voluntary takeover bid.
The end of a stock market adventure that began 24 years ago. On Friday May 3, L Catterton declared that it had received 8,656,066 shares following its friendly takeover bid for the Italian company, bringing its stake, along with those of the Della Valle family and LVMH, above the 90% threshold required to delist the group.
The voluntary takeover was agreed with the Della Valle family, founders of the Tod’s Group.
The shadow of L Catterton
One month after acquiring a majority stake in beauty giant Kiko Milano, and almost three years after acquiring Birkenstock, L Catterton is once again taking an interest in the world of shoes, indirectly this time.
Last February, Crown Bidco s.r.l, an affiliate of L Catterton, revealed that it was seeking to acquire 36% of Tod’s SpA, i.e. almost 13 million shares, at 43 euros per share, for around 512 million euros. L Catterton is the entity born of the partnership between the Catterton investment fund and Bernard Arnault’s family holding company, Financière Agache, formerly known as Groupe Arnault.
The voluntary takeover bid was subsequently launched for 27.9% of the Group, as L Catterton had acquired additional shares in the meantime, bringing its stake in Tod’s to 7.9%. As a result, the value of the offer is now expected to be €398 million.
Minority shareholder Delphine SAS, a 100% subsidiary of LVMH, has agreed not to tender its 10% shareholding at the time of the delisting, and will be granted governance and exit rights.
An aborted delisting in 2022
The company’s CEO and founder, Diego Della Valle, who has a long-standing relationship with LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault and sits on the board of the number one luxury goods company, sells a 10.45% stake in Tod’s.
As a result, the Tod’s family (Diego Della Valle and his brother Andrea) will retain 54% of the capital, L Catterton will indirectly hold 36% and Delphine SAS 10%.
This is in fact the second time that Diego Della Valle has expressed his wish to leave the Milan stock exchange. In 2022, he had to back out as he was unable to reach the 90% shareholding threshold.
By leaving the Milan stock exchange, the Tod’s Group hopes to revitalize its brands, away from the prying eyes of the markets.
The Tod’s Group stated in the press release that discontinuing listing is considered “a prerequisite to ensure the continuation of [Tod’s] future growth and consolidation programs”, enabling the group “to pursue its objectives in a market environment and legal framework characterized by greater management and organizational flexibility, with faster decision and execution times and also benefiting from reduced management and listing costs”.
In addition to the eponymous Tod’s brand, famous for its iconic peaked moccasins (Gommino model), the Tod’s Group also owns French shoemaker Roger Vivier and the sportier Italian Hogan.
Last year, the Italian group generated sales of 1.12 billion euros, up 11.9% on 2022.
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Read also > L CATTERTON ACQUIRES A STAKE IN KIKO MILANO
Featured Photo: © Tod’s
