4/6/2019 Exclusive: Renzo Rosso’s OTB Buys Stake in Amiri – WWD

https://wwd.com/business-news/mergers-acquisitions/exclusive-renzo-rossos-otb-buys-stake-in-l-a-brand-amiri-1203145143/

EXCLUSIVE: Renzo Rosso’s OTBBuys Stake in L.A. Brand AmiriThe Italian fashion group will help support the growth of the brandfounded by Mike Amiri in Los Angeles in 2014.

BUSINESS / MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS

By Luisa Zargani and Booth Moore on June 3, 2019

MILAN — Renzo Rosso’s latest investment is in Los Angeles.

The Italian entrepreneur’s OTB holding, owner of Diesel, has

taken a stake in the luxury brand Amiri, founded by Mike Amiri

in 2014, and now with a who’s who of celebrity fans including

Justin Bieber, Beyoncé, Keith Richards, Taylor Swift, Michael B.

Jordan, Alicia Keys and Post Malone.

“It’s 100 percent my world and my mentality in luxury,” an

upbeat Rosso told WWD in an exclusive interview.

He was speaking of the founder and the rock-‘n’-roll-inspired,

born-in-L.A. luxury brand, which sells men’s and women’s

$1,250 hand-distressed Japanese denim, $650 shotgun-

distressed knits, $1,100 palm-tree-painted trucker jackets and

$1,390 bandana-buckle boots inspired by Axl Rose at stores

including Barneys New York, Maxfield and Mr Porter. Amiri is

also up for the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year award at

tonight’s CFDA Awards.

Amiri Men's Fall 2019Courtesy Photo

4/6/2019 Exclusive: Renzo Rosso’s OTB Buys Stake in Amiri – WWD“It’s what I would have dreamed to do and I found it ready and

done by Mike. I am very happy to be his partner, to have a

supporting and strategic role, and I want to help him grow the

brand by bringing my 40 years of experience to the table,” added

Rosso.

He declined to disclose financial details, but said this was a

minority investment.

“It’s a great story, I have been following him for a long time and

Amiri has become one of the most interesting shows in luxury. I

like how he interprets luxury sportswear with a distinctive

voice. We’ve been meeting for a while, we’ve been talking about

a million things, and we have a great relationship — our

partners get along, too. He is honest, lovely and very modern in

his approach,” touted Rosso.

“Mike and I are very similar, but in addition he sketches. He is a

rare creative talent and passionate entrepreneur at the same

time, a lawyer son of lawyers — he knows how to negotiate and

discuss contracts,” laughed Rosso, referring to the designer’s

background making one-off jackets for rock stars while he was a

Loyola Law student. “But we understand each other right away

and make decisions quickly.”

4/6/2019 Exclusive: Renzo Rosso’s OTB Buys Stake in Amiri

Renzo Rosso  Louis Teran

“We had never sought out any outside partnership,” Amiri said

of his business, which employs 65 people at a 25,000-square-

foot headquarters in downtown L.A.’s Arts District, and expects

to generate sales of $60 million in 2019. “I met Renzo during a

visit to L.A. a few years ago, kind of organically, and we talked

more about product and creativity than anything. He always

was there as a sounding board, encouraging me to shoot off

questions. It was an easy friendship. We spoke a few times a

week, and had dinners with our wives. When the discussions of

having him be a part of what we’re doing came about, it wasn’t a

hard decision.”

Amiri is looking to Rosso for help opening his own retail stores

as soon as this year, he said, as well as broadening his offerings

into tailored suiting and accessories, which will likely be

4/6/2019 Exclusive: Renzo Rosso’s OTB Buys Stake in Amiri – WWD

https://wwd.com/business-news/mergers-acquisitions/exclusive-renzo-rossos-otb-buys-stake-in-l-a-brand-amiri-1203145143/

manufactured in ateliers in Italy “with an L.A. spirit.”

“As we scale, I struggled with how do we expand globally while

maintaining our integrity. He has a lot of experience scaling

product but maintaining a spirit of creativity,” said the designer.

“It’s a minority investment. We still retain full control of the

company and independence. As we begin to move toward our

own retail and broader category selections within the collection,

it only makes sense to have someone who has 40-plus years’

experience in retail and creating luxury products on our side

and as a voice in the room.”

When asked about L.A.’s ascendence as a creative capital, Amiri

said, “It’s encouraging to have so many eyes on Los Angeles

because I believe there is lots of great talent here who have

never before had the opportunity to get in front of the right

people. But the art movement and development in downtown

L.A. has also validated talent that has always been here. I hope

Amiri and our expansion opens doors for other designers who

have global aspirations.”

Rosso praised Amiri’s ability to build a solid brand that has

quickly garnered market space and a loyal following. “There is

no need to change it, the brand will continue to be true to itself,

but it will be able to tap into OTB’s assets and production

development — it’s a win-win situation. We have started to talk

about distribution and we have decided to open stores but we

will have to fine-tune when, where and how. The brand’s

sellouts are incredible and Amiri is available at the best stores

around,” he said.

At a time when collaborations are the new black, asked if Amiri

could perhaps work with Rosso on Diesel, the entrepreneur did

not go into specifics, but said: “That would be great.”

For Amiri, Rosso’s integrity won him over. “He’s very family-

oriented. His organization is much bigger than ours, but the

relationship he has with his team resonated. I watched him in

his headquarters, he has his hands on product still. I aspire for

that kind of enthusiasm and energy when I have 40-plus years

in the business.”

Considered a marketing whiz and a talent scout with a true

passion for creative design, Rosso oversees and supports the ITS

talent search in Italy’s Trieste, is mentor to the winner of this

year’s ANDAM main fashion award, and he is also jury president

of Milano Moda Graduate. Asked to comment on the future of

the traditionally trained designer, following the news of the

partnership between Rihanna and LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis

4/6/2019 Exclusive: Renzo Rosso’s OTB Buys Stake in Amiri – WWD

https://wwd.com/business-news/mergers-acquisitions/exclusive-renzo-rossos-otb-buys-stake-in-l-a-brand-amiri-1203145143/

Vuitton, Rosso said “people who have great sensibility and

strong contact with the public, who understand beauty, add a lot

to fashion,” citing Kanye West and Virgil Abloh as other

examples.

Fashion in any case “remains anchored in the great touch of the

designer, someone that makes the rules, someone with real and

pure creativity, like Margiela or Galliano, and then someone

with different characteristics. It’s very much up to the

intelligence of a person to surround themselves with the right

people.”

Mike Amiri  Ken Tisuthiwongse

In April, OTB chief executive officer Ubaldo Minelli revealed the

group was eyeing some M&A activity.

4/6/2019 Exclusive: Renzo Rosso’s OTB Buys Stake in Amiri – WWDAs reported, OTB has been eyeing an investment in the Roberto

Cavalli company. OTB’s manufacturing arm Staff International

is Just Cavalli’s licensee, and its parent company presented an

expression of interest with a recapitalization of 164 million

euros, according to a court filing to request a restructuring plan

with creditors presented by Cavalli.

While last year revenues decreased 5.2 percent to 1.44 billion

euros impacted by the performance of the Diesel brand, the

group’s main business, Minelli emphasized the strength of the

group’s net financial position, totaling 111 million euros, up 32

percent compared with 2017 and net equity, which stands at 885

million euros.

Based on these financial resources, a more efficient structure

and a simplified and integrated organization, the group will

invest 200 million euros in the next three years on an industrial

development plan and, in particular, the company pointed to

the expansion of the current perimeter of OTB through M&A

operations.

While growing Diesel into a global sportswear brand over the

years, Rosso has been building a diversified fashion group under

OTB. Rosso purchased a majority stake in Maison Margiela in

2002, famously tapping John Galliano to helm it in 2014. In

2008, he acquired a majority stake in Viktor & Rolf and in 2012,

he bought Marni, in 2015 taking full control of the brand, which

is now designed by Francesco Risso, after the exit of founder

Consuelo Castiglioni in 2016.

The group also controls manufacturing arm Brave Kid. Staff

International, based in Italy’s Veneto region was bought by

Rosso in 2000, and produces and distributes collections for

Dsquared2, among others.

In 2016, OTB bought accessories company Paula Cademartori.

Diesel John Galliano Rihanna