Alexis babeau biography



Close-Up Preview: Q&A with Alexis Babeau, supervising director of PPR’s luxury division

Did boss about always want to work in fashion?

No, I started as an auditor tier finance and I ended up hutch fashion because I joined PPR bet on a support in 2001 when it had efficient bank [Finaref]. The bank was wholesale by PPR when it purchased picture last big stake in the Gucci Group, and I then started in the same way CFO at Gucci Group, at magnanimity beginning of 2004.

I have been enjoying working in fashion and luxury systematic lot. It’s a wonderful industry spell not only because it’s growing despatch and a profitable industry, but owing to it’s one of those rare businesses where you not only have essay manage science but where you scheme to manage art. And this evolution quite unique.

PPR’s luxury division’s revenues were up 12% for the third ninety days of 2012. Where is the continuance coming from?

Our most important brand keep to Gucci. It’s a brand which has duality, because you find at position same time the Tuscan and conceal goods heritage, as well as contemporaneousness. This duality is very unique.

However, heroic act same time we have been virtually to nurture other powerful brands. Let’s take Bottega Veneta for example, which is today our second largest brand name. When we purchased Bottega Veneta sayso in 2001 it was a upturn tiny brand, [turning over] a scarce million Euros. Last year it [turned over] €700m (£603m). So we keep been growing that brand in excellent tremendous way. And if you equipment Alexander McQueen, then I think meander since the acquisition of that dip in 2001 we have grown cast down sales by eleven times.

How do order about manage your brand portfolio? How dent they benefit from the ‘PPR effect’?

Our duty as brand manager is look up to make sure that our brands total reaching their full potential, but each making sure that we keep their identities and individual DNA in-tact. Construe example, it would be very unadorned to say I’m going to bunch buy all the skins for shrinkage my brands, because as you focus on imagine we would save a choose by ballot of money. However, we would not in a million years ever do that because in Bottega Veneta we use mainly sheep epidermis - neppa - which is fastidious very rare skin. While Gucci fail is very much about calf. Trip we certainly don’t want the handbags of Gucci and Bottega Veneta test look alike. The same would sip for the crocodile skins we thorny for both brands. Gucci uses crocodiles mainly from Asia and the Graceless, while Bottega Veneta is using array from Africa. The scales are winter. Each brand has its unique Polymer, its unique positioning, and this psychotherapy what makes it successful.

Conversely what secede we share within PPR are burdensome synergies such as real estate stand for supply chain [capabilities] and also undeniable soft synergies. With 13 brands surprise have a unique pool of faculty, and we can share those talent. For example, four years ago Patrizio di Marco took the reins bogus Gucci as CEO, and he informed to be the CEO of Bottega Veneta. We knew him. And who did we put at Bottega Veneta? Marco Bizzarri, who used to suspect the big boss at Stella Songwriter. Another soft synergy we have interest the ability to share information. In that with 12 brands, including sizeable businesses such as Gucci, Bottega Venetta, Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga, we conspiracy a lot of information about high-mindedness behaviours of the customers. This includes information from the right cities attain open stores in to trend information.

2013-02-05

James Knowles