On Monday, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton announced the sale of its Donna Karan label to G-III Apparel Group. The transaction, valued at USD $650 million, is expected to close in late 2016 or early 2017.
“Donna Karan International has a deep heritage, global recognition, and renewed energy,” says Toni Belloni, group managing director of LVMH. “We believe the DKNY brand has a dynamic position in the market, and when G-III approached us about acquiring the brand, we concluded that the time was right and that G-III was the right steward going forward.”
This sale is the second in the group’s 30-year history, following LVMH’s 2005 sale of Christian Lacroix. G-III will add the brand to its already impressive roster, which includes the likes of Ivanka Trump, Calvin Klein and Tommy Hillfiger.
Plans for the acquisition come just over a year after Donna Karan’s retirement from the fashion house. At this time, LVMH announced a new strategy for the company, suspending the brand’s high-end line, Donna Karan, to focus on the brand’s everyday contemporary collection, DKNY.
As of late, Karan has been focused on her new “Urban Zen” line of products, which promotes the work of global artisans.
A press release from LVMH notes that Barclays acted as exclusive financial advisor to G-III, while Norton Rose Fulbright US LLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP were its legal advisors. Moreover, Barack Ferrazzano Kirschbaum & Nagelberg LLP acted as legal advisor to LVMH.
