Mytheresa has entered an agreement with Richemont to acquire the Yoox Net-a-Porter (YNAP) business and create a “multi-brand digital group of significant scale,” according to a company announcement. The deal is expected to close in the first half of 2025, pending antitrust approvals.
Richemont will sell YNAP with a cash position of €555 million and no financial debt in exchange for a 33% equity stake in Mytheresa. Richemont will be locked in as a shareholder for one year following the transaction’s closing, followed by an additional one-year period in which the company can only sell a limited number of shares.
Richemont also will give Mytheresa a six-year revolving credit of €100m to finance YNAP’s general corporate needs, including working capital. In exchange, Richemont will have the right to nominate a member and an observer to Mytheresa’s Supervisory Board.
Mytheresa plans to create a global digital luxury group that offers a “highly curated and strongly differentiated edit of the most prestigious luxury brands and products,” according to a company press release. And although both companies have “strong reputations” for their combination of curation, editorial voice and technology innovation, their combined storefronts will create a broader brand portfolio, which will help expand customer reach and geographic expansion.
Inside Mytheresa’s Immediate Plans for Yoox Net-a-Porter
Mytheresa’s vision for the combined group includes:
- Integrating YNAP’s luxury division into Mytheresa to form one group with three distinct storefronts: Mytheresa, Net-a-Porter and Mr Porter. All three brands will share infrastructure, including Mytheresa`s technology platform and operational best practices, to drive operational efficiencies;
- Separating the off-price division, which includes Yoox and The Outnet, to create a simpler and more efficient operating model that will support profitability goals; and
- Discontinuing YNAP’s white-label division, which previously powered the Richemont Maisons’ online stores, so they can migrate to their own chosen platforms.
“With this transaction, Mytheresa aims to create a pre-eminent, multi-brand, digital, luxury group worldwide,” said Michael Kliger, CEO of Mytheresa, in a statement. “Mytheresa, Net-a-Porter and Mr Porter will offer differentiated but complementary multi-brand luxury edits based on curation, inspiration and outmost customer service. The three brands will share a large part of their infrastructure creating synergies and efficiencies while maintaining their different brand identities. The off-price business will benefit from the separation from luxury and a much simpler operating model driving growth and profitability. We believe that this transaction will create significant value for our shareholders, brand partners and most importantly for our high-end customers.”
Advertisement
Luxury retail experts indicated that mergers and acquisitions present opportunities for market innovation, especially during a year of volatile consumer spending and shifts in shopping behaviors and expectations. “Usually, uncertainty is a good moment to rethink the portfolio, do M&A and rethink the business’ overarching strategy,” said Federica Levato, Senior Partner and co-author of the Worldwide Luxury Monitor from Bain & Company.
