3/5/2026

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

Good day and thank you for standing by. Welcome to the Prada Group full year 2025 results presentation. At this time all participants are in a listen only mode. After the speaker's presentation there will be a question and answer session. To ask a question during the session you need to press star 1 1 on your telephone. You will then hear an automated message advising your hand is raised. To withdraw your question please press star 1 1 again. Please be aware that we'll take and answer one question at a time before moving to the next question. And please note that today's conference is being recorded. I would now like to hand the conference over to Mr. Andrea Bonini, Group CFO. Please go ahead, sir.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining Prada's Group's full year 2025 results conference call. This is Andrea Bonini, Group C financial officer, and I'm delighted to be with you again. I'm joined by Mr. Andrea Guerra and Mr. Lorenzo Bertelli. The agenda for today's presentation is on page four, and as always, it'll be followed by Q&A. As a reminder, during today's call, we may discuss forward-looking statements which are subject to risks, uncertainties, and factors beyond our control that could cause the actual outcome and returns to differ materially from such statements. Please refer to the disclaimers included on slide two of our presentation. With that, I will hand over to Mr. Guerra.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Hello, and welcome also by my side. Obviously, we are here today during a very peculiar moment, a period of turmoil in Middle East. We do not know what will happen, but we hope it will be short. And let me be, let me say something. Let me be very close to all our associates. and all our people on the ground today in Middle East, to all our stakeholders in the region, in this specific moment of prey, reflection and community, we're very close to all our people in the region. Having said so, and I think this is paramount, I would love to start off saying that 2025 for our industry has been a very challenging year. I can state and we can state that during the last three, four years, the industry lost something like one consumer out of five. In this long period, the Prada Group has been very solid. And not only for the past years, but also in 2025. Retail sales in 2025 have grown again throughout the year, mostly or mostly entirely again like for like, marking another plus eight at the end of the year. We've been able against strong comps of 2024 to keep Prada on a break even like for like, and most importantly, a sequential improvement through second half compared to first half. Miu Miu finished Q4 at a plus 20 on a plus more than 80% of a year ago. And it's obvious looking to the trend in the last four quarters that we have begun our growth normalization journey that will continue during 2026. 2025 has been for our both brands a very interesting journey. Why interesting? Because we were able to showcase a lot of novelties, a lot of new ways of doing things, utilizing new tools, really upgrading our capability on digital technology and artificial intelligence tools to do what? To become closer, to upgrade significantly product intrinsic value, to be sure to allow all our consumers to understand and therefore to tell them the stories around products that were coming out to the market upgrading significantly our hospitality inside the stores and outside the stores and in the redefinition of new stores flows. On the other side, always in this new normal, we have been very clear and very focused on enterprise products and ranges. During this year, we did not only perform solidly, but we continued investing on our people, on their know-how, on their motivation. We have continued investing on our strategic digital plans and AI tools. We continued investing over proportionally on desirability and awareness of our brands. And we have continued to invest over proportionally versus sales on our stores, to upgrade aesthetics, and even more important, to increase our hospitality standards. And even if the level of investments on all these cost lines have been over-proportionate, we were able to keep a steady profitability, which means that what we committed upon, which was being more productive and being more efficient, We have been able to do it in all other profit and loss lines. And do not forget, and Andrea will be obviously much more detailed of me on this, the amount of FX, headwinds, we have been living and we will continue to experience in 2026. Last but not least, we began during December our journey closing the acquisition of the Versace brand.

speaker
Presentation Slide
Slide Prompt

What does all this mean?

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

We have been talking about the new normal. We have been talking about digital tools really coming to a standard use. We have been discussing about hospitality. It's obvious that we are entering a new journey now together with Versace. And this means that on one side, we have new achievements to be accomplished during 2026, 27 and 28. And on the other side, also the commitment to constantly grow over market range. During this next period, we feel that the Prada performance will be solid and to really reaping all benefits of desirability first and all actions and investments in place. We are consolidating MiuMiu's success, enhancing awareness and driving growth through 2026 with very different weights on the two halves the first half is more challenging because we were yet in a plus 40 45 range a year ago therefore we expect a first half to be in the single digit growth but yet being able to show a much solid trajectory for the full year. We are beginning the journey with Versace, a year of consolidation, a year of synergies, and a fantastic start to shape the creative vision. The journey will go through a first phase of channel repositioning, supporting high-quality full-price sales and distribution. And we will see what this means for the numbers of Versace and for the overall performance of the group. I will now turn the word to Lorenzo and Andrea to give you a full view of Prada and Miu Miu brands, numbers, performance, and also an initial view of Versace first steps in 2026. Grazie.

speaker
Lorenzo Bertelli
Head of Marketing & Communications and ESG

Good afternoon. Thank you, Andrea. First of all, I would like to highlight how Prada continues to strengthen its position as a cultural and creative leader, not only by setting trends, but also by consistently elevating the brand experience across all touch points. All the core of this performance is authentic creativity. Throughout the year, our fashion show reaffirmed Prada's ability to anticipate and shape contemporary culture, translating a deep understanding of the present into a clear, distinctive, aesthetic language. This creative strength was equally evident in our communication. We delivered highly impactful campaigns that combined cultural relevance with strong brand desirability. At the same time, we continue to build a multifaceted brand universe throughout unique experiences and long-term partnerships. A key milestone was the opening of Michang Prada Rongzai, our first stand-alone restaurant in Asia, conceived by Renoir Fermor Wopong Karvai. This project perfectly represents our approach to hospitality as a cultural expression. where fashion, cinema, and lifestyle intersect in a meaningful way. Enhanced retail concept contributed to strengthening the client engagement. New hospitality venues in Shanghai and Singapore, the landmark retail opening in New York, and the refined setting of Prada Alexander House in Hong Kong are some of the key milestones in the evolution of the store footprint over the years. In parallel, our long-standing partnership between Prada in Eros and Red Bull allowed us to engage new audiences through high-performance portable projects, reinforcing the brand's connection to innovation, performance, and contemporary lifestyle. Finally, Prada continued to play an active role in shaping the contemporary culture debate with signature initiatives in London, Osaka, Abu Dhabi, and Milan. These events were complemented by special projects and activations such as Day of Summer and The Sound of Prada, which further expanded the brand reach. All of this reflects our ongoing commitment to creativity as a strategic driver of value. This slide illustrates how MIMU continues to stand out as one of the most desirable and relevant brands in the luxury landscape, driven by a language that is both distinctive and highly distinctive. At the heart of MIMU's performance is its vibrant, disruptive creativity, which consistently fools the brand's desirability. Throughout the year, MIMU maintained an exceptionally high level of buzz supported by fashion shows that were widely acclaimed and strongly resonated with both the fashion community and broader cultural audiences. This creative energy was amplified by our campaign, which featured a diverse and influential cast of talent, reinforcing a new connection with the new generations of consumers. The special project played a key role in engaging and expanding MIMU's ever-growing community, such as our collaboration with New Balance and the American tennis champion Cocoa Golf, as well as the exploration of new creative territories through Katherine Martin's upcycled collection, accompanied by her directional debut short film, Grand M.V. In addition, the launch of MIMU's first fragrance with L'Oréal Mutine marked an important step in expanding the brand's universe. Experiential activations such as the Ateneo and Gymnasium pop-up further enriched MiuMiu's signature codes, transforming retail into a space of discovery and cultural exchange. In parallel, MiuMiu continued to reinforce its distinctive cultural positioning throughout event initiatives that deepened its long-standing dialogue with arts. Finally, all the initiatives were accompanied by a mix of openings and renovations that elevated the store network for an unanswered customer journey. london and tokyo were among the most significant projects unveiled over the period overall new strength lies in stability to combine strong desirability with authentic cultural relevance a balance that continue to full grow and engagement let's move now to esg over the past year we continue to execute our sustainability strategy across our three pillars planet people and culture On the environmental front, we made tangible progress across both our operation and supply chain. Investment in green energy and low-impact solutions enabled us to exceed our approved science-based target for scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions, a result that confirms the strength and discipline of our decarbonization pathway. At the same time, we advanced our raw materials conversion plan, strengthened environmental data collection across the supply chain, expanded our water stewardship initiatives, and further improved responsible chemical management. Equally important is our commitment to people. During the year, we reinforced our efforts to foster a fair and inclusive workplace. We achieved the gender equality certification in Italy, rolled out our worldwide people culture forums and delivered DNA awareness training programs in line with our global DNA roadmap. This year also marked the 25th anniversary of the Prada Group Academy, a milestone that reflects our long standing dedication to preserving artisanal excellence and supporting generational transition. Culture remains the defining element of our identity. Through our partnership with UNESCO and SeaBeyond project, we further strengthened our commitment to ocean education, opening the first ocean literary center in Venice, launching a dedicated multi-partner task found and hosting an educational exhibition in Shanghai. We also renewed important partnerships supporting urban biodiversity and cancer research. Overall, the year reflects consistent progress and a clear commitment to creating a sustainable long-term value. I will now leave the floor to Andrea for the financial review. Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Thank you, Lorenzo. Before we dive into the numbers, let me remind you that we completed the acquisition on Versace on December 2nd, and therefore we consolidated one month of contribution from the brand into our financials. In the presentation, we will also provide growth rates excluding this impact, to which we refer as organic growth. With this in mind, let's now move to the key financials, The group reported net revenues of 5.7 billion, up 9% versus fiscal year 24 at constant effects. On an organic basis, revenues grew 8% year on year. This performance delivered against ICOMs throughout fiscal year 24 marks the fifth consecutive year of growth at group level. Exchange rates had a negative impact of 380 basis points on revenues and increased at current exchange rate is therefore plus 5%. Retail sales for the period totaled 5.1 billion, up 8% organic versus fiscal year 24, and up 28% versus fiscal year 23, a constant effects. Habit adjusted reached 1.32 billion in fiscal year 25, with margin of 23.2%, including the dilutive impact of Versace. Prior to such a consolidation, EBIT adjusted margin was steady versus 2024 in a context of significant investments across functions and FX headwinds. On a cost and currency basis, EBIT adjusted margin improved the earnings. Finally, thanks to the significant cash generation, we maintained a healthy balance sheet, closing the year with a net bet position of $466 million after $620 million of capex cash out, including real estate, 1.2 billion for the such acquisition, and 420 million of dividends. Moving on to the next slide, retail continued to be the key driver of the top line performance, up 9% versus fiscal year 24 at constant effects, 8% on an organic basis, driven by like for like, full price sales, and with a positive contribution from both average price and full price volumes. The fourth quarter delivered a solid performance up 6%, notwithstanding the challenging comparison base. As a reminder, in 2024, retail channel growth was remarkably consistent at plus 18% in all quarters. Contribution from space remains limited in the low single-digit region. Wholesale was up 4% year-on-year, 3% on an organic basis, reflecting the usual selective approach with independents. Q4 at minus 1% organic was impacted by our cautious stance on shipments to Saks Global, and we are pleased that business with this important and strategic partner has now resumed. Royalties were up plus 19% year-on-year, plus 14% organic, supported by both eyewear and fragrances. Turning to the next slide, retail sales by brand, we are pleased with the performance of our brands, as they continue to enjoy high desirability and relevance in a challenging context. Prada showed good resilience closing the year at minus 1%, with Q4 delivering further sequential improvement and turning positive, despite the more difficult comps, supported in particular by mainland China, Korea, Japan, and Americas. Miu Miu delivered sustained growth throughout the period against exceptionally high comps. Retail sales grew by 35% to reach 1.6 billion euros, Growth was well spread across all product categories and regions. Q4 sales were up by 20% against plus 84% in 2024, with growth remaining well balanced. As a result, the brand contribution to group retail sales increased to 31% against 25% in fiscal year 24. As for churches, the strategic efforts of the past years continue to keep the brand on a positive trajectory, driven by like-for-like sales. Moving to the next slide, retail sales by geography, we are pleased to report that the group achieved growth across all regions. Asia-Pacific showed a good progression over the year, a plus 11%, plus 10 organic, with Q4 broadly in line with Q3, notwithstanding the higher comps. Positive performance in Europe, up 5% over the year, plus 4 organic. We saw softer trends in the second part of the year with strong multi-year comps and lower tourism weighing on the region. Consistent double-digit growth in the Americas with sales up 18% plus 15% organic, driven by local demand. Japan delivered growth notwithstanding the exceptionally high touristic flows of the last year, closing the year at plus 3%. Q4 showed some improvements versus Q3, driven by both solid local demand and increased traveler flows, notwithstanding the geopolitical tensions in the region. And lastly, the Middle East also delivered a solid performance at plus 15, with moderating trends in the second part of the year on high comps. Turning to the next slide, gross margin reached 80.3% in fiscal year 25, up by 50 basis points, thanks to operating leverage and channel mix, while the dilutive impact from Versace consolidation for only one month was negligible. Excluding the consolidation of Versace and StrongFX headwinds, EBIT adjusted margin improved, driven by slightly higher gross margin, G&A savings coming from efficiencies and operating leverage, which more than offset higher marketing and selling costs. Including the dilutive impact of Versace consolidation, as shown in this page, EBIT adjusted reached 1.32 billion, corresponding to an EBIT adjusted margin of 23.2. And finally, net income reached 852 million, an increase of 2% versus fiscal year 24. Moving to the next slide, CAPEX for fiscal year 25 was 617 million, 535 excluding real estate. as we continue to invest across retail industrial capabilities and technology. On the retail side, as you've heard from Andrea, investments were concentrated on the enhancement of the store presence with renovation projects and controlled new openings and enlargements at both Prada and Miu Miu, in line with the objective of furthering the relationship with clients. Aside from retail, we continue to strengthen our industrial capabilities, investing into our infrastructure and to progress on the digital evolution journey as we started to reap the benefits from our multi-year system upgrade plan. We expect CapEx as a percentage of sales to start reducing from the current fiscal year. Moving to the next slide, we're very pleased with the evolution of networking capital and the control of the inventory. showing further improvement year-on-year on an organic basis, with incidents on net sales declining from 15% to 14%. Lastly, we retain a healthy balance sheet post-acquisition, with net debt of $466 million. The Board of Directors has proposed a dividend per share of 16.6 cents, which compares to 16.4 last year, which would result in a total dividend of 425 million and a stable payout ratio of 50%. I'll now pass it back to Lorenzo for an update on Versace.

speaker
Lorenzo Bertelli
Head of Marketing & Communications and ESG

Thank you, Andrea. As we have said in the past, we are very excited about this new chapter. With Versace, we welcome a brand that has made the history of fashion and glamour as we know it today. Its estate is boldly unique, represents modern elegance, and constitutes a highly complementary addition to Prada Group's existing portfolio. We started this journey being able to count on a lot of strengths. First of all, remarkable and long-standing awareness. Second, resonance across a diversified client base, which is limited if not overlapped with our customer base. Third, strong legitimacy in haute couture and across product categories, balanced across men and women. Lastly, strong cultural relevance, a rich archive, and solid brand equity. Because of this, we believe the brand offers multiple untapped levels of growth. We are aware that this won't be an overnight task, but a passionate journey towards the brand's full potential, and that's why the timing of our initiatives will be of the essence. In terms of priorities, the following slide highlights the key action we are going to implement in the next months. Creativity will be the foundation of our work and we have taken a first important step into this direction with the appointment of Peter Muller as Chief Creative Officer. Peter will join in July and we are very excited to have him on board. In the meantime, we will continue to assess the current collection and product lines to identify areas of improvement in terms of quality and structure. The second building block of our plan will be a gradual channel repositioning. We will progressively shift the focus towards quality, full price, sales and distribution. At the same time, instilling a retail excellence mindset will be essential for improving in-store execution. In parallel, we will progress with integration process across functions and we expect to complete the separation from crappy holdings in H2. Looking at 2027 and beyond, we will essentially bring all of these areas to the next level as we lay down the basis for the building long-term desirability. At the beginning of the year, we present Peter's first collection showcasing the new creative vision rooted in the brand's original spirit and DNA. The collection will also continue to evolve as we progressively reposition the brand and relaunch special projects like Atelier Versace. We also continue with the network optimization as we progressively rationalize the off-price channel and the markdown practices while focusing on driving in-store productivity with self-help initiatives in terms of retail execution. All this action will be supported by a further integration of activities and processes across the organization to unlock synergies opportunities. Now back to Andrea for some financial consideration.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Thank you, Lorenzo. In terms of financials, as already explained, we consolidated only one month of the business in 2025. On a full year basis, the brand generated revenues of approximately 680 million euros. Looking ahead, 2026 will be a year of transition for the brand as we navigate the change in creative leadership. We also want to commence the path towards a healthier, more sustainable and more profitable business, conscious that we have to move back to go forward. Therefore, we will further clean up the collections, discontinuing Versace Jeans Couture and leaving no sub-brands in existence in ready-to-wear and other core categories. At the same time, we will start to implement a greater discipline in terms of discounting while remaining mindful of the commercial needs. On the wholesale front, we expect progressive stabilization and we will start implementing some actions to rebalance the commercial relationships to healthier terms. All in all, we expect this to translate into a mid single-digit top-line contraction at constant FX, which is likely to become high single-digit at current FX. Turning to profitability, first of all, let me point out that the company's initial margin is at a good level in relative terms to our industry. However, we believe that quality must be improved and also that initial margin is diluted by significant discounting. Therefore, We'll progressively invest in quality. On the other side, we will start implementing greater discipline on discounting. All considered, in fiscal year 26, we expect gross margin to be relatively stable with a caveat on duties as the situations remain fluid. In terms of OPEX, we have acted decisively and we will see the benefit of initial synergies and savings. This will be partially reinvested in strategic areas like visual merchandising and marketing while we maintain cost discipline on all other non-strategic items. All in all, we expect to be able to mitigate the negative impact coming from the top line reduction and the EBIT loss will not be too dissimilar from the one incurred in fiscal year 25. The target is to limit that to a two-digit figure. Now, moving to the next slide, let's translate that into a group view. On top line for 2026, our ambition is to continue to generate solid, sustainable organic growth at Prada, Miu Miu, and group level. Prada turned positive in Q4, and our expectations are for a solid year. Miu Miu is now lapping the fourth consecutive year of very significant growth, and we have continued to observe normalization. As Andrea mentioned at the beginning of the call, H1 is particularly challenging, with Q1 at plus 60% and Q2 at plus 40%. Nonetheless, we aim for another year of growth. We already discussed Versace in the previous slide, so it doesn't require any further comments. Last point on top line, we expect to continue facing meaningful effects pressure in fiscal year 26, similar to 2025. Turning to profitability, let me first discuss expectations, excluding Versace. We remain committed to continue to deliver some degree of organic margin progression on a yearly basis. Marketing spend will slightly increase as a percentage of sales, and we expect to continue to achieve efficiencies in labor, rent, and G&A. So, leaving aside the impact of Versace, as long as the group top-line growth in reported terms remains in mid-single-digit territory, we can deliver a steady EBIT margin without acting more drastically on investments or costs. Versace's consolidation will result in EBIT margin dilution in fiscal year 26, and our target is to resume progressive improvement from 2027. With that, I'll hand over to Andrea Guerra for closing remarks.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

We're very happy to have shared with you our 2025 performance and to share with you our initial thoughts on future journey. Years ago, we committed to an upgrade, an evolution of our ability to have a stronger, more proactive relationship with all our clients and potential clients. To be more efficient and productive in our retail network and overall in our company. To empower and upgrade our people, wherever they are in the group, aligning them constantly to their brand missions. We achieved solid constant growth. We significantly improved in all our consumer-based activities. We have seen profitability increase year by year, working capital sequentially improving, and therefore cash flow. So obviously we are pleased for all these achievements and all these activities. Now we're entering a new journey, which is made by all the things that we have already talked about, in constant evolution plus Versace. We are committed. We're working hard. We will be patient to have the right pace. Obviously, in this new normal world, agility and efficiency remain non-negotiable. I will try to anticipate some of your questions now. How are these first months? Trajectory for Prada is improving. As Andrea said, we are expecting a solid year for Prada and we had a solid Chinese New Year full period, like for like on last years and in the whole Asian region, except Japan, where Chinese tourists were much less present, but On the other side, fortunately in Japan, we are winning with our beloved Japanese local clients. Europe started January slow and improved with Milan Olympic Games and Fashion Weeks. Obviously, Europe for Prada and Miu Miu are challenged by very high double-digit for the past years, not years. Korea is still strong. North America is still very strong. And obviously, I will repeat that we are here to challenge ourselves to keep a growth rate higher than market average with trajectories, which are different from our different brands as stated during our presentation. With this, I would like to thank all of you for listening, and we are now open to your questions and comments.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

As a reminder, to ask a question, please press star 1 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To answer your question, please press star 1 1 again. Once again, it's star 11 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 11 again. Please be aware that we'll take and answer one question at a time before moving to the next question. Thank you. We are now going to proceed with our first question. The questions come from the line of Ed Hubev from Morgan Stanley. Please ask your question.

speaker
Ed Hubev
Analyst, Morgan Stanley

Yeah, good afternoon, and thank you for taking my question. So the first one is going to be on top line, so Andrea Guerra. So you mentioned that you expect, or sorry, maybe it was Andrea Bonini mentioning that you expect a solid growth for Prada in 2026. Could you please kind of define solid? Should we understand that you expect to grow kind of low single digit at constant effects for Prada after a minus one in 25, or would that be even higher than that? And if so, what kind of is going to drive the reacceleration from 25 to 26? And then regarding Miu Miu, do you think a double-digit growth at constant effects is something which is achievable, or given the difficult combat, that might be difficult to achieve? So that would be question number one. Thank you so much.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

hello yeah we you're asking for a guidance and we are not giving guidance especially in this world today where I mean in the last only last six months we have been living any positive and negative and side effects so I hope that we use the proper words. We have been very careful on adjectives we were using, and I will not comment further. The only comment I would do is that if everything goes well, we will be double digit on mu mu, but with this world, things could be different.

speaker
Ed Hubev
Analyst, Morgan Stanley

Got it. But maybe, Andrea, if I can just follow up, not asking for guidance, but, again, you talked about your expectation for a solid growth for a product brand in 26. Again, without quantifying, you were down one in 25. So if you could please elaborate on why you think you're going to reaccelerate in 26 versus 25. Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Sure. We had a peak down. in certain central months of the year and central months of 2025 or else we would have been pretty positive in 2025 as well. I think that we can cover those months with a positive rate. We have been positive since August, September, October, November, December were positive. In December, it's a question sometimes of calendar where a year you got a couple of days gift, a year you got a couple of days back. And this was a case where we gave it back or else in a kind of organic manner, we were a little bit more positive. Having said so, I think we have a rhythm of product innovation, of product evolution, of activities, of events. We, I think, we have reached the level of maturity on a number of retail activities and hospitality activities. And we're also beating our own sometimes mind effects on very high transactions. So these are all the reasons why I feel solid, as we said.

speaker
Ed Hubev
Analyst, Morgan Stanley

Got it. And my second and last question, and maybe it's for Lorenzo, but on Versace, so you've been appointed executive chairman. Congratulations. You also mentioned that you've hired Peter Muller, who is obviously very well regarded in the industry. Is the team in place now? And, you know, did you hire mostly from the product group? You had transfer, or did you hire external employees? And, again, it seems that you want to not rock the boat, so to speak, too quickly with the rationalization of the story state and the outlets. But, you know, how fast are you ready to move on kind of shrinking to grow the business longer term? Yeah. Thank you.

speaker
Lorenzo Bertelli
Head of Marketing & Communications and ESG

Thank you for the question. No, I would say it will be balanced. Let me start from the end of your question, then I go back to the other. So the priority for sure is the full price in the retail network and then also the rationalization of the outlet, also thinking that with the new collection coming out from Peter from next year's you will have a previous collection that they of course they will need to accelerate to the outlet so after it will come later for sure uh first of the full price then um regarding to the question organization i think this is quite an hybrid um because we have some of the functions that have been absorbed in the group function uh typical back office function like it and others um and and so it's more like um efficiency poor efficiency other function um we simply had streamlined a bit organization so not like a key significant outside role except that you heard on journal like the shift of the supply chain that was coming from valentino was a former prada and historic employee so external but let's say part of the family in the past And at the moment, more or less, we are happy like this also with Emmanuel as a CEO. And then we will take, for sure, the next six, eight months to even better understand the organization that we will see. But at the moment, we are, for sure, happy. Of course, with Peter, we will have some changes in the design offices. But I would say normal stuff, and that's it.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

Okay. Thank you. Next question, please.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question, and the questions come from the line of Thomas Chauvet from CT. Please ask a question.

speaker
Thomas Chauvet
Analyst, Citigroup

Good afternoon, everyone. Thanks for taking my question. I have two, one on revenue and one on the Middle East. The first one on the Sachet revenue contraction that you anticipate, for this year from 680 million last year. We understand it's largely self-inflicted due to the channel repositioning. Can you give us an idea of the magnitude of the store closures you are planning? Are there also some wholesale rationalization or is it just retail closures through 26 and 27? And you said earlier the expected operating loss won't be much higher than 25. Can you indicate what was the Versace EBIT loss in calendar 25? It seems to be around 10, 20 million, if my math is correct, if we assume, as you said, that the old product group EBIT margin was flat at 23.6% ex-Versace. That's my first question. Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Thomas, it will be good. So on revenue, I said it, that the expectation is for mid-single digit at constant effects, which is likely to become high single digit, or we will be, because with effects you never know, on a reported basis. That's on the top line of Versace. And on the second question, likewise, I mean, not much to add. to what I already said. I said that our target is to limit the operating loss to a two digit figure. And if the number you were referring to, I think you mentioned 10-ish million for fiscal year 25, I assume that number is for You were referring to a number that is the one that we consolidated for the fact of December into our numbers and is not of a mile. Let's say that, you know, it's a single digit number, but it's around there.

speaker
Thomas Chauvet
Analyst, Citigroup

Okay, thank you. Is that clear? Yeah, that's very clear. Thank you. And my second question on the Middle East, which you disclosed separately, in your segment reporting 5% of your sales. Can you remind us how many product and new stores you operate in the region and how many of them are currently closed given the complex situation and what is your overall exposure to the Middle Eastern clientele if you take into account the sales to locals? in the Middle East, but also sales to Middle Eastern tourists traditionally in Europe and other markets. Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Regarding Middle East, in terms of opening and closing stores, it's a daily evolution and a daily activity. Difficult situations are in Qatar, in Bahrain, and in Kuwait. Having said that, Middle East is very different places, very different regions, because, I mean, basically Saudi, nothing happened, and it's, I would say, 100% local clientele. The Emirates, I would say, is one-third locals, one-third expat, one-third tourists.

speaker
Presentation Slide
Slide Prompt

And, I mean, we will see what's going on. Thank you. Next question, please.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question. And the questions come from the line of Chris Gao from CLSA. Please ask your question.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Hi, everyone. Can you hear me?

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We can, yes.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Yes, thank you. Thank you for taking my question. I have two. So firstly, regarding the progressive improvement in 2027, regarding the slide sheet, just want to follow up a bit on that. So does it mean that we expect Versace will go back to a growth territory? And also for the margin, can we expect, you know, turnaround? Excuse me, excuse me.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Excuse me. Your line is very, very disturbed. We can't, there is a huge, there is a huge noise.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Can you hear me now?

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Hopefully, let's see.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Can you hear me now? Okay, thank you. So first question is about Versace products. No, your line, excuse me, no, your line is MS.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Try later, please.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Okay.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Thank you. Let's go to the next and then please come back.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question. And the questions come from . Please ask your question.

speaker
Unknown
Analyst

Yes, good afternoon. Thank you for taking my two questions. The first one is on the wholesale channel. What are your expectations for this year? And my second question is on the retail network. Can you give us an idea on the store openings you expect this year and the perimeter effect you expect due to these openings? Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Yeah, on wholesale, more or less we're having the same kind of percentage growth in these last years and more or less we will keep on with the same percentages. As we said, we had the necessity to keep back some inventory not to be shipped to SACS at the end of 2025 and we resumed, and Andrea was saying, our shipments beginning of 26. also why in Q4 we were a little bit less in our normal standard average. So I would say that we will keep on having more or less the same average growth that we had in these years. In terms of retail network, for Prada I would say it will be between some pluses and negatives and opening and some closures. We will remain with the same kind of square meters, but I think we will close more stores than what we will open during 2026. With MiuMiu, we will add another 5 to 10 stores during 2026. And then, as we said two years ago, And we will also close some with Miu Miu. But at the end of 2026, the big progression in terms of space expansion for Miu Miu is basically over. That is, we will be with something around 170, 175 stores, and we will remain there for a while.

speaker
Unknown
Analyst

Thank you very much.

speaker
Presentation Slide
Slide Prompt

Next question, please.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question. And the question comes from the line of Chris Huang from UBS. Please ask your question.

speaker
Chris Huang
Analyst, UBS

Hello. Hi. Thanks for taking my questions. I have three, if I may. Starting with the first one, just a clarification on the product brand cluster. I think in the previous calls, you always provide some colors, so you can do the same for Q4 in terms of, Americans, Europeans, Chinese, cluster trends for Prada brand retail, please.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Hi, Chris. So clusters for the Prada brand, the Chinese, starting from Chinese cluster, there was a significant quarter-on-quarter improvement, which is driven by positive domestic consumption and better travel spending. Europeans was flattish for the year, slightly softer in Q4 versus Q3 with local demand remaining more resilient than travel spending. The North Americans was positive mid-single-digit for the year and further improved in Q4 to positive, let's say, high single-digit, mostly domestic. And Japanese was positive low single-digit in Q4 and full year with no major differences versus Q3, mainly solid local demand.

speaker
Chris Huang
Analyst, UBS

Okay. That was perfect. And then secondly, on Miu Miu, if I caught it correctly, You were saying that given the very tough comps, I guess, on a multi-year basis, you're expecting single-digit growth in H1 before an acceleration into H2. I'm just trying to skirt the math here because, in theory, we do start to see more meaningful space contribution from 2026. I think you were mentioning 10 to 15 stores. So going from 20% in H1, to single digit, and if you can also quantify a bit, it's going to be like a low, mid, high single digit. Are you assuming very cautious volumes assumptions to get to that kind of guidance target, please?

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Yes, we are. Exactly what you're saying.

speaker
Chris Huang
Analyst, UBS

So you're assuming volumes decline in H1?

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

No, no, no. We are being cautious.

speaker
Chris Huang
Analyst, UBS

Okay. So you don't rule out the potential scope for positive surprises. That's what you're saying.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

You know, I think that time has arrived and we are happy with the journey we have done and with the journey we have in front of us. But we are now in an everyday competition and gaining our opportunities and wins and battles. I think it's a journey that it's... especially this first one, two, three, four months pretty complicated because we were in a plus 60 range last year. And then it's a little bit easier. Obviously, on the other side, when you open a store, you also need to allow the business to go where it has to go. So we're extremely happy of the new stores we opened. I think that we didn't really make any real mistake and let's go. I mean, I think this is a very important year for Miu Miu and we are into it and onto it every single day of our life.

speaker
Chris Huang
Analyst, UBS

Okay, perfect. That's very helpful. And last but not least on Versace, I think in the press release you mentioned that 2026 obviously would be diluted to the group and you expect 27 onwards to start to see some gradual improvement. If I remember correctly in the past when you were executing the product turnaround, I think the EBIT margin pressure kind of lasted for a longer period of time because of the acceleration in investments. But is it fair or can you kind of outline the underlying assumptions you have here for Versace to already start to see margin improvement in 2027, unless I'm misunderstanding anything here.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Well, first of all, I would start, Sandra Bonini, I would start saying that the The two situations are very different. So comparing, you know, the Prada turnaround to Versace and so would not really take that as a comparable. As we, you know, look forward, there's an element, of course, of reinvestment into the business, into the brand and accelerating on certain areas of spending. that will move margins in a certain direction. At the same time, we will continue to look for synergies and efficiencies that should help in the opposite direction. And most importantly, as we always say, a lot depends from the top line. And on the top line, we will see from 27 on, really, the results of the actions that we will be taking. on retail, at the same time on wholesale, you know, that you already talked about the fact that, you know, we already said we anticipate some sort of stabilization already starting from 26. So there's, you know, elements going in the two directions that make us believe that things are going according to plan. Yes, we can indeed start seeing an improvement from 27.

speaker
Chris Huang
Analyst, UBS

Okay, got it. Thank you so much.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

You're welcome. Next question, please.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question, and the questions come from the line of Daria Nassal-Dishiva from Bank of America. Please ask the question.

speaker
Daria Nassal-Dishiva
Analyst, Bank of America

Good afternoon, everyone. This is Daria from Bank of America. Thanks for taking my question. I actually just have one. On Versace, when will Peter Miller present his first collection for the brand, and what will be the timeline of collections change? given currently Dario Vitale collections, I think, have started to arrive online and in stores so that we just understand the cadence of the collection rollout. Thank you so much.

speaker
Lorenzo Bertelli
Head of Marketing & Communications and ESG

As we said, the first show of Peter will be beginning of next year, and the collection first has to arrive and has to work on it, so I cannot answer to that question. Honestly, for sure, it's going to be different from the one of Dario.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Next question, please.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question. And the questions come from the line of Anne-Laure Bissmet from HSBC. Please ask your question.

speaker
Unknown
Analyst

Anne-Laure, your line is open. You may ask your question. Due to no response, we are now going to carry on with the next question.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

The questions come from the line of James Grisnick from Jefferies. Please ask your question.

speaker
James Grisnick
Analyst, Jefferies

Yes, thank you. Good afternoon, Andrea, Lorenzo and Andrea. I just had two quick ones. The first one is Andrea, can you be perhaps a little bit more specific on what keeping losses of Versace to double-digit in 26 looks like? We're basically gunning for 80, 90 million euros of losses, basically. That would be helpful. And secondly, perhaps more fundamentally, you seem to have gone a huge supplier rationalization process in recent weeks. Can we perhaps understand what comes out of that process? What you'll gain out of that dynamic, please?

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

If I... Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

And Andrea, you know, you always have to be more specific, but I suppose it's for me, it's Andrea Bonini on the Versace... Did I understand correctly the question that what's keeping it at that level?

speaker
James Grisnick
Analyst, Jefferies

No, it's more if you can be a little bit more specific on what double digit keeping a double digit level means. I mean, appreciate you gave us that the one month was a minus eight minus nine contribution. But are we basically looking for 26 keeping that loss 80, 90 million euros, is that the quantum of magnitude?

speaker
Andrea Bonini
Group Chief Financial Officer

Not going to be. Yeah, no, but not going to be. I think, you know, we've said a lot, and I'm not going to be more specific than that for today. And second question, Andrea?

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

So, regarding our, what you said about supplier rationalization, I think this is a journey that really began with COVID, and this has gone in parallel on one side in creating more internal manufacturing infrastructure. We created three factories from that moment to today, and we are working on two others. One is a renovation, and one is a new one. And on the other side, I think that in our journey, we have attacked the weaker. We have given more work to more organized players. And I think this is the journey that has been the characteristic of our history since we were born. So I wouldn't... consider this as a special year or a special moment. No, it's the journey we're doing.

speaker
James Grisnick
Analyst, Jefferies

Very clear. Grazie mille.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Grazie. Next question, please.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

We are now going to proceed with our next question. And the questions come from the line of Chris Kao from CLSA. Please ask your question.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Thank you. Thank you for taking my question, and I hope the sound looks better now. So first question from me is regarding the performance during Chinese New Year. We have seen a very solid one. So just wondering if you see any differences between high-net-worth consumer as well as the expirational consumer. Do you see which category of consumer group can drive the growth more, or actually they are both performing very well. And we can see you have been launching quite a good line of product expansion into home categories, et cetera, with entry-level price. So we wonder if we actually are expanding, you know, more categories that can maintain the dialogue with aspirational customers in the coming year. Thank you.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

So first of all, I take the opportunity to say that we have been really happy and grateful to all our Chinese and Asian teams during this last six weeks. They worked day and night, and I think that we have been successful on all lines. This is what I'm happy about. I mean, we have been very successful on new customers, which is something that We were not seeing for quite a while in China, so that was a good one. And we improved on all our segments from VIC to aspirational customers. And what was good about this Chinese New Year is that we had a positive outlook from travelers and from locals before Chinese New Year. I don't want to say that China is back. I don't want to say that. But the steps and the progression have gone in the proper direction.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

Thank you.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

So my second question is still about Versace. So it's actually about the progressive investment improvements in the year of 2027. So just want to understand more about this progressive improvement. Does it mean that Versace brand will go back to the profit growth trajectory in terms of sales? Or will we actually see the profitability improving to break even or actually profit making? So how can we expect a three-term outlook, especially regarding the improvement in these requirements?

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

Thank you.

speaker
Lorenzo Bertelli
Head of Marketing & Communications and ESG

I think at the moment, honestly, to have a clear outlook on next year, Versace, especially in China's market, is too early. And as we said, we are looking to reduce losses next year and to improve marginality and for sure start the journey of a steady pace to grow with Versace. But at the moment, it's too early to have a more precise outlook than that.

speaker
Chris Gao
Analyst, CLSA

Okay, thank you. So congratulations on the new journey with the statue.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

Thank you.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

I think we have one last question, so let's move with that. Thank you.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

Thank you. We are now going to proceed with the next question, and the questions come from the line of Paola Carboni, Equitasim. Please ask your question.

speaker
Paola Carboni
Analyst, Equita SIM

Yes, hi. Good afternoon, everybody. Thank you for taking my questions. Most are about Versace. I will start asking you if you can touch base on what are your plans in terms of supply chain for the brand? What are you going to change in this respect and possible integration with your supplier base? And a second question still on Versace, if you can elaborate on what Are you planning in terms of category mix if you envisage any change in the architecture of collections already with next year? And third one on the profitability of Versace whether your stance on margins for full year 26

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Also takes into account of some write-down of the journey, which is made by all the things that we have already talked about in constant evolution plus Versace. We are committed. We're working hard. We will be patient to have the right pace. Obviously, in this new normal world, agility and efficiency remain non-negotiable. I will try to anticipate some of your questions now. How are these first months? Trajectory for Prada is improving. As Andrea said, we are expecting a solid year for Prada. And we had a solid Chinese New Year full period, like for like on last year's and in the whole Asian region, except Japan. where Chinese tourists were much less present. But on the other side, fortunately in Japan, we are winning with our beloved Japanese local clients. Europe started January slow and improved with Milan Olympic Games and Fashion Weeks. Obviously Europe for Prada and Miu Miu are challenged by very high double digit comps for the past years, not years. Korea is still strong. North America is still very strong. And obviously, I will repeat that we are here to challenge ourselves to keep a growth rate higher than market average with trajectories which are different from our different brands as stated during our presentation. With this I would like to thank all of you for listening and we are now open to your questions and comments.

speaker
Operator
Conference Call Operator

As a reminder to ask a question please press star 1 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question please press star 1 1 again Once again, it's star 1 1 on your telephone and wait for your name to be announced. To withdraw your question, please press star 1 1 again. Please be aware that we'll take and answer one question at a time before moving to the next question. Thank you. We are now going to proceed with our first question. The questions come from the line of Ed Huber from Morgan Stanley. Please ask your question.

speaker
Ed Hubev
Analyst, Morgan Stanley

Yeah, good afternoon, and thank you for taking my question. So the first one is going to be on top line, so Andrea Guerra. So you mentioned that you expect, or sorry, maybe it was Andrea Bonini mentioning that you expect a solid growth for Prada in 2026. Could you please kind of define solid? Should we understand that you expect to grow kind of low single digit at constant effects for Prada after a minus one in 25, or would that be even higher than that? And if so, what kind of is going to drive the reacceleration from 25 to 26? And then regarding MiuMiu, do you think a double-digit growth at constant effects is something which is achievable, or given the difficult combat, that might be difficult to achieve? So that could be question number one. Thank you so much.

speaker
Andrea Guerra
Executive Chairman

Hello. Yeah, you're asking for a guidance and we are not giving guidance, especially in this world today where, I mean, in the last, only last six months, we have been living any positive and negative and side effects.

Disclaimer

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