French luxury goods conglomerate Kering is said to be holding talks with advisors to help it fend off a potential attack from activist investors including Bluebell Capital Partners.
Bluebell Capital has taken a position in Kering and is looking to agitate for changes, including improvements at the group’s Gucci business and potential deals, according to Bloomberg. A combination between Kering and Swiss rival Richemont is also on the table.
Bluebell may face challenges in pushing its agenda at Kering, which is controlled by the Pinault family, owners of a 42% stake and 59.3% voting power.
The activist last year failed to seat its own Francesco Trapani on the board of Richemont after controlling shareholder and Chairman Johann Rupert rejected the idea of having a former LVMH executive as a board colleague. However, the activist claimed partial victory as Richemont gave more influence to Class A shareholders for the first time in more than three decades.
During recent talks with Kering’s top echelon, Bluebell proposed a tie-up with Richemont, accordion to the newswire. Richemont Chair Rupert said in May that he rejected a potential tie-up between his company and Kering in 2021 when it was floated by bankers. The same year, Kering said it wouldn’t rule out transformational M&A.
Kering shares were up 1.7% at 539.80 euros each Thursday morning in Paris after jumping 7.2% Wednesday. The company has a 66-billion-euro ($74 billion) market value, compared to Richemont’s at 80 billion Swiss francs ($93 billion).