French luxury group LVMH have officially agreed on a deal to take total control of Christian Dior at a total cost of $13 billion.
While the group had previously been the majority shareholder of Dior, LVMH has now agreed to buy out all remaining shares at a price of €172 and 0.192 Hermès International shares per Christian Dior share. Christian Dior was the principal holding company for LVMH prior to the merger, but will now be fully integrated into the group.
Having already had control of Parfums Christian Dior, the move will see LVMH take control of Christian Dior Couture as well, which incorporates all of the brand’s fashion and leather-goods divisions, to unite the brand fully.
The news comes as part of a big week for Dior, after the opening of a new luxury outlet in Tokyo earlier this week.
Discover some images of our newly-opened House of Dior #GinzaSix store, located at the heart of Tokyo, Japan. #DiorTokyo pic.twitter.com/E6axxIfJKp
— Dior (@Dior) April 24, 2017
The Arnault family group, which controls LVMH, released a statement explaining the deal that had been put in place.
“A simplified public offer by the Arnault family group for Christian Dior shares — that it does not currently hold — and take form of a primary offer consisting of €172 per share in cash and 0.192 Hermès International shares for each Christian Dior share, and would be completed by two secondary offers, in cash and in Hermès shares respectively,” said Arnault.
“The corresponding transactions will allow the simplification of the structures, long requested by the market, and the strengthening of LVMH’s fashion and leather-goods division thanks to the acquisition of Christian Dior Couture, one of the most iconic brands worldwide.”
The move is being considered something of a financial and operational success for LVMH, since Dior posted total revenue of over €2bn in the last 12 months, with a profit from recurring operations of €27o million. What is more, the unity of one of the most iconic fashion brands in the world is sure to create a market boom in the group’s favour.
The deal will hopefully be finalised in late May. We hope it doesn’t change any of their iconic and gorgeous products.
