LONDON — Acne’s days of reckoning are approaching.
According to industry sources, bids to buy a majority stake in the company are due in the next few days, with the more than 10 candidates — a mix of private equity players, trade buyers and ambitious Chinese conglomerates — in the running.
Stumbling blocks to the sale, however, are many.
Goldman Sachs, which has been managing the process, declined to comment. As first reported in WWD, the bank has been shopping Acne Studios around since January and had hoped to have a buyer identified by the end of July. Sources said that may not happen, though, for a variety of reasons.
The asking price is punchy, with the sellers asking for 14 to 15 times earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, or around 300 million euros to 400 million euros. It is understood that 70 to 80 percent of the company is for sale.
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The company’s sales are about 200 million euros, but multiple sources say the business has softened over the last six months. The slowdown in growth has sent some private equity players running for the hills and created “tension around the valuation” for the ones who’ve remained, according to sources.
“It hasn’t been as smooth a process as everyone expected it to be,” said a person familiar with the sale. Another individual called the price “uncomfortable,” and said it was getting serious pushback, and that no lead candidate has emerged so far.
“Acne is a strong global brand with a creative presentation,” said William Susman, managing director at Threadstone Advisors. “The question for investors is, ‘What is the growth ahead?’ Has the brand peaked, or is there room to become one billion [euros] in turnover?”
An investor familiar with the deal said while the brand has lost momentum in the U.S. market, it “resonates very well” in Asia, and that Goldman’s successful road show in the region earlier this year was proof of that.
WWD broke the news in March that Goldman was shopping around a majority stake in the company on behalf of cofounders Jonny Johansson and Mikael Schiller. The process started with fireside chats with potential investors, with the company set to come to market formally this summer.
At the time, Schiller refused to confirm that the company was for sale. Johansson continues to insist that only a minority stake is up for grabs, although it is understood his plan is to step down a few years after a sale is complete.
Earlier this month before Acne’s Paris ready-to-wear show, Johansson said that he and Schiller are not looking “to sell the whole thing.”
“We sold 20 percent many, many years ago to be able to make this company, and that part has been for sale for a long, long time,” Johansson said, adding that the two owners of the minority stake were splitting and wanted to sell their stakes.
“We have to accept a new shareholder.…And they’re out looking. If the right moment is there, we will change,” he said.
Prospective buyers are said to include Shandong Ruyi, soon-to-be owner of Bally and the owner of SMCP, the French owner of Sandro, Maje and Claudie Pierlot that floated on the Paris Euronext in October.
The Chinese company, which also owns Gieves & Hawkes, Kent & Curwen and Cerruti 1881 through its majority stake in Trinity Group, has been on a buying spree and is looking for premium brands that are scalable. Fosun, owner of Lanvin, Wolford, St. John Knits, Caruso, is thought to be another candidate.
Will a deal be sealed?
“That all depends on the price,” said a person familiar with the situation. Another one said it’s likely the process will slide into September, and possibly October, with all parties keeping their fingers crossed that sales growth picks up.