«In 2023 revenues could exceed 4.5 billion»- Corriere.it

un year that beat expectations on revenues and margins, withnet revenues up 21% to 4.2 billion, ebit to 845 million, up 69%. «Excellent results in a complex context, the result of the strength of our Prada and Miu Miu brands. But also because we have continued to invest: 276 million in 2022 and we will reach 300 this year. The four key areas will be marketing communication, retail, production centers and digital systems». Patrizio Bertelli, the entrepreneur of the Prada group talks about himself after a record year.

Your group is a bit of a hare for the luxury world. How do you always stay ahead?
«We’ve been racing since the 1990s, even if we’ve had periods of slowdown. This happens in all things, sometimes you recognize the causes but you can’t grasp the way to change. You grow when you manage to transfer a positive state of mind and transmit it in your individual work but also in the company. You become good when you work deeply. It’s like when you train in sport, you learn to be more efficient. This in-depth work allows us to intercept the cultural changes which we then interpret with the products. The platform on which our business is based has, on the other hand, expanded greatly in the last twenty years from a geographical point of view and allows us to intercept all markets».

What do you expect for 2023, is China recovering?
«The restart of China is evident, if there are no particularly negative elements, the group should record growth rates even higher than the last quarter of 2022. Any negative aspect never remains local, it is the effect of globalization, the real difference historical compared to the past”.

Are companies still worried about inflation and rate hikes?
«The price of raw materials slows down and this helps, businesses are less worried than six months ago. Even the word recession has disappeared but we are still in the world of prudence. The important thing is to have strong brands and consistently support their positioning. We have finished the work on Miu Miu and are now repositioning Church’s».

Fashion and luxury have shed their skin in recent years and focused on industry, you always have…
«95% of what we produce is made in Italy. It is a strong commitment to supporting Italian industry that I have made since the 1990s. I accompanied the generational change in factories, of small entrepreneurs who had no heirs and risked losing precious skills. It is essential to safeguard the supply chain because the know-how is here in Italy, working for the benefit of the conservation of the species. Then whether French, American or Italian groups do it, it doesn’t matter. We are looking at possible acquisitions along the supply chain, starting with our supplier network. Unfortunately, in the early 2000s know-how was lost because many small entrepreneurs closed because there was no correct generational transition».

Will you continue the acquisitions of sustainable companies?
«My son Lorenzo takes care of it but in the company we are all involved in pursuing this strategy, each according to his or her own skills».

You have 24 establishments, 21 in Italy, how important is technology in the fashion industry?
«It is becoming more and more rewarding but at the same time we have to work in the traditional way. Some phases can be done with robots. We will soon open a robotic conveyor for footwear in Tuscany. But the technology requires a profound cultural change that stirs great discussions. We have always invested heavily in the industrial part with the prospect of growth. We have also been, in certain phases, penalized by costs because investing in Italy is more expensive. But the advantage is that you can support product development with internal resources. Building industrial sites is expensive and the results can be seen in the medium term».

The family has set up a change of governance that opens up to the new generation. How will things change?
«After the April shareholders’ meeting, I will be executive chairman and Andrea Guerra, who has experience of generational handovers and has been managing director since 26 January. But the evolution is underway. Gianfranco D’Attis has also arrived as CEO of the Prada brand. We are working with this setup. The generational change has also affected managers, now we have a team of young managers around 40 years old. I think it’s a good example for the sector, for those who are afraid. In every sequence there is a bit of the theme of leaving the scene. I find that it is better to dilute the anguish than to be forced to concentrate choices at the last moment».

So the prospects are to work a little less?
“They actually make me work harder.”

In the past you have acquired other brands, today you seem to have taken a different path.
«The capital mistake was to acquire a brand leaving the old owner to manage it there, even if he is a stylist, or keeping the first line of managers because otherwise you have enemies inside».

The French know it well…
“Yes, but we are Latinos, less pragmatic”.

You explained to the analysts that you have achieved your goals in advance in terms of profits and that you are ahead of your medium-term targets…
«We achieved our profitability targets in 14 months instead of three years. And if all goes well, we will also achieve revenues which could exceed 4.5 billion in 2023».

What will the Prada group be like in ten years?
«I’d like to imagine a reality that has a turnover of ten billion».

There has been talk of a double listing for Prada which is already listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange. Is there any news?
«It remains an option that we are analyzing in terms of feasibility. But there are still many technical aspects to solve because there are no precedents».

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