A look Gcds fw 2021
Quintuple the turnover of Gcds in three years from the current 17 million. And make Guliano Calza , founder of the label, a new Gianni Versace . Word of Alessandro Binello , CEO of Quadrivio group , the company that just over a month ago acquired the majority of the brand through the Made in Italy vehicle fund (see MFF of 13 November 2020), launched in 2015 by the brothers Giuliano and Giordano Calza . The Made in Italy fund is at its third operation in the fashion segment, two years after the acquisition of 120% linen and a few months after that of Rosantica. “We are very acquisitive, and in the coming weeks we will announce the entry of another brand,” he told MFF. Revealing the details of the business plan that will serve to achieve ambitious goals. From e-commerce to a possible listing, taking advantage of the experience of a manager like Patrizio di Marco . Investing in GCDS has put your fund in the limelight. What is the optics of the operation
Many speak of supporting Made in Italy but in reality there is no specialized fund, like ours, in supporting transversal sectors. The most important data is to make Gcds, which has a large share of e-commerce sales, more attractive on the online through a communication centered around the founder Giuliano Calza. In today’s Italian fashion scene there is a lack of people like Gianni Versace was in the 80s. Giuliano approaches him. We will try to create a new brand with a new Versace and he has the characteristics to be. The brand has not yet expressed its full potential. How much will the turnover grow
The goal is to reach 100 million in turnover for Gcds within 3 or 4 years. Due to the pandemic, 2020 turnover will be around 17 million, so it will be quite a significant growth. There are investments but it is not so much a question of numbers but of method, we are planning something very transformative. What are your goals for e-commerce?
E-commerce is part of the digitalization framework. (Currently it is worth between 5 and 8%, ed. See MFF of 23 September 2020). We want to have double-digit numbers on e-commerce, it must become the most important part of the company’s sales: over 20% at least. We would like to create our own e-commerce, since it must be the backbone of the company. Quadrivio has a digital advisory board with the best professionals in the sector. What team of managers will lead the new GCDS
We have already announced that the team will be much stronger. The team will therefore change but always under the control of Giordano and Giuliano Calza, and with a transversal leadership role for Patrizio di Marco . Patrizio made a company from scratch, Bottega Veneta , as well asPrada Japan and Prada America . Let’s think about how much he has developed them. This is a more complex challenge than Golden goose , which was already formed when he entered. Also think about a landing on the stock market
You need to have a dimension like that of Moncler when it decided to go public. It will depend on how the growth path evolves, the conditions are not yet there, but the priority is to make the brand more digital. Beyond the turnover, the listing makes sense with a capitalization of at least one billion. If you become a highly digital brand it can make sense: think of Farfetch … How do you see the fashion landscape
You have other acquisitions in sight
We will announce another brand acquisition by January. We have three more operations in progress. We will only buy brands, the supply chain will then be able to support but the objective of the Made in Italy fund is precisely to preserve the brands they produce in Italy. They must be “rising stars” brands. (All rights reserved)
