Armani designs the future of his company
The extraordinary meeting of the company “Giorgio Armani spa” has approved the introduction of two categories of shares without voting rights. This important change suggests a more flexible capital structure in the future, with the possibility of involving purely financial investors, without decision-making rights, alongside those who hold shares with voting rights. The company responded to this news with a “no comment”.
Read also: Top Manager Reputation, Messina at the top: Armani takes second place
In 2016, the famous fashion designer Giorgio Armani, at the age of 89, had established the Giorgio Armani Foundation, outlining the succession framework and defining the governance rules of the holding. This new statute will only come into force upon Giorgio Armani’s succession, and will remain secret until that day. At the 2016 meeting, no information on the content of the statute was leaked. However, on September 26, the founder of the group, who holds 99.9% of the shares (0.1% is owned by the Giorgio Armani Foundation), called a meeting for the “amendment of the statute with deferred effectiveness”.
The minutes state that it is intended to create two categories of shares without voting rights, the total value of which cannot exceed half of the share capital. This could indicate greater openness towards external shareholders and a possible redefinition of the capital structure between the Foundation, the family and the managers. It should be noted that Giorgio Armani has no direct heirs but three nieces, Silvana and Roberta, daughters of his deceased brother Sergio, and Andrea Camerana, son of his sister Rosanna. These three grandchildren are currently members of the board together with the manager and friend Pantaleo Dell’Orco and the entrepreneur Federico Marchetti, founder of Yoox.
The group reported good results in 2022, with revenues reaching 2.35 billion euros (an increase of 16.5%), an Ebit of 202 million euros (an increase of 30%) and a net profit decreasing to 162 million euros (compared to 169.9 million in 2024). Giorgio Armani explained the 2016 choices by declaring that the Foundation has the aim of reinvesting capital in charity and ensuring balance within “Giorgio Armani spa”. Its beneficiaries will continue to be part of the board of directors and will own shares in the company, as established in his will. Furthermore, a part of the company will pass directly to the Foundation.
#Armani #designs #future #company #King #Giorgio #survive