The Richemont Group has just signed an agreement with Mytheresa, ready to buy the YNAP (Yoox Net-a-porter) platform. The Munich-based site is stronger than the previous takeover candidate, Farfetch. Negotiations broke down after the latter was taken over by Korea’s Coupang.
Mytheresa removes a thorn from Richemont’s side.
The German luxury e-commerce specialist has signed an agreement to buy the YNAP (Yoox Net-à-Porter) platform, which the Swiss group has been trying to dispose of for several years.
The aim? “tocreate a leading multi-brand digital luxury group with global reach, offering luxury enthusiasts around the world a highly specialized and differentiated selection of the most prestigious luxury brands and products”, explain Richemont and Mytheresa in a press release published on October 7.
The terms and conditions? “Richemont will sell YNAP to Mytheresa with cash of €555 million and no financial debt, subject to customary closing adjustments.” Richemont will also provide YNAP with a €100 million, six-year revolving credit facility.
Strapontin in luxury e-commerce
But the Swiss group will retain a foothold in multi-brand luxury e-commerce, as Mytheresa will issue shares representing 33% of itsfully diluted share capital.
Richemont will also have the right to appoint one member and one observer to Mytheresa’s supervisory board following the closing of the transaction. Which “is expected in the first half of 2025, subject to customary conditions, including regulatory approvals”.
According to Fashion Network, prior to Mytheresa, other takeover candidates – Bain Capital and Permira – had come forward before throwing in the towel in the face of YNAP’s declining performance, with losses growing in inverse proportion to sales. And after several months of negotiations, the tie-up signed with Farfetch in mid-2022 finally stalled at the end of 2023, following the London-based platform’s difficulties and its takeover by Korean company Coupang…
Wind in the sails
For its part, Mytheresa is on a roll. The online retailer, listed on the New York Stock Exchange, posted record sales, up almost 10% to 840.9 million euros in the 2023-2024 financial year ended June 30.
The site, which ships ready-to-wear, accessories, jewelry and luxury lifestyle products to over 130 countries, also significantly improved its profitability. Its adjusted EBITDA margin reached 4.3% in the second half of 2023-24, compared with 1.7% in the first half.
By setting itself apart from the currently battered luxury goods market, Mytheresa was able to finalize its transaction agreement with Richemont at just the right time.
“ We are one of the few digital platforms, if not the only one, to have succeeded in growing profitably” , emphasized Michael Kliger, CEO of Mytheresa.
Spin-off
However, Mytheresa intends to separate YNAP’s loss-making “off-price” division, comprising Yoox and the Outnet, selling previous seasons’ collections at discounted prices, from its profitable luxury division, namely Net-a-Porter and MR PORTER” , which offer luxury items without discount.
The “off-price” division indeed “needs a simpler, more efficient operating model to drive further growth and profitability” says Michael Kliger.
Mytheresa also intends to integrate “YNAP’s luxury division into Mytheresa, to form a group with three distinct storefronts: MYTHERESA, NET-A-PORTER and MR PORTER”. According to Mytheresa’s CEO, this would enable the group to offer customers “ differentiated but complementary multi-brand luxury services, based on selection, inspiration and unrivalled customer service.
Luxury brand partners, for their part, would benefit from “ even broader and more specific access to luxury consumers worldwide, thanks to distinctive curation and inspiration”.
Synergies and limits
Finally, “the three brands will share a large part of their infrastructure, which will create synergies and efficiency gains, while retaining their respective identities”, Michael Kliger points out. The press release also highlights the added value of Mytheresa’s “technological platform” and “operational best practices”.
However, some players are questioning the limits of such a complementary integration, given that Mytheresa, Net-A-Porter and Mr Porter have customers and brands in common. They also suggest that such a merger could lead to salary cuts…
Finally, once the transaction is completed, Mytheresa will eliminate YNAP’s “white label” division, which managed the online stores of the Richemont Houses, which are expected to decide to join other platforms.
Michael Kliger and his teams believe “that this transaction will create significant value for our shareholders, our partner brands and, above all, our high-end customers”.
A real challenge
Johann Rupert, Chairman of Richemont, is no doubt of the same opinion. He believes that “Mytheresa is ideally placed to build on YNAP’s strengths to continue delighting customers and partner brands worldwide by leveraging the respective strengths of both companies.”
However, this merger is taking place in a difficult environment, which has severely shaken the success stories of the past. In addition to Farfetch, MatchesFashion was acquired by Frasers Group, which shortly afterwards placed it under administration and closed it down after realizing that it would be too expensive to relaunch!
“Mytheresa has proved to be a survivor in all this drama and has emerged when its competitors are now more likely to be online boutiques attached to physical stores (such as Selfridges, Flannels, Printemps, etc.) rather than pure-players” notes Fashion Network.
By acquiring a company larger than itself, and against the backdrop of a very confused luxury market, Mytheresa is taking on a real challenge…
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Read also > Luxury e-commerce: Mytheresa improves its performance
Featured Photo: © Yoox
