Luxury conglomerate Kering has sold its 100% stake in the Sowind Group, which owns the Swiss watch manufacturers Girard-Perregaux and Ulysse Nardin.
The brands will now be owned by their current management, including CEO Patrick Pruniaux (pictured).
Kering said in a statement that the transaction “is in line with [its] strategy, giving priority to the Houses with the potential to become sizable assets within the Group, and to which it can provide decisive support over time.”
Further financial details were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to be completed by the end of the first half of 2022.
Kering added: “The Group has supported the two [watch brands] in their development, strengthened their positioning, and ensured they have adequate resources to finance their growth. It has confidence in the management in place to successfully pursue the work undertaken.”
In 2011, Kering, then known as PPR, purchased the Sowind Group, which at the time consisted of Girard-Perregaux and sister brand Jean Richard. In 2017, Pruniaux, who spent three years at Apple trying to turn its Apple Watch into a luxury device, took over Ulysse Nardin. In 2018, he also took over the Girard-Perregaux brand.
The two brands are among the oldest in the industry: Girard-Perregaux’s roots go back to 1791, while Ulysse Nardin dates back to 1846.
“On the sound foundations laid thanks to Kering’s support and investments, we have the right setup and resources to implement a plan capable of ensuring the long-term development of both brands,” Pruniaux said in a statement.
Added Kering’s Group managing director Jean-François Palus in the same statement: “The extensive work carried out by the Group in recent years at Girard-Perregaux and Ulysse Nardin has laid the foundations for sustainable growth. Kering has demonstrated its ability to secure the conditions for the long-term development of entities leaving the Group, in the interest of their employees, partners, customers, and local communities.”
(Photo courtesy of the Kering Group)
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