MILAN — Prada Group’s management started to pull back the veil on their plans for Versace as the Italian luxury group reported its 20th consecutive quarter of growth on Thursday.
Versace’s chief creative officer Pieter Mulier, who will join the brand on July 1, will present his first collection at the beginning of next year, and will revive the Atelier couture line, according to executive chairman Lorenzo Bertelli, who spoke with analysts on a conference call. Mulier unveiled his spring collection and swan song at Alaïa in Paris on Thursday.
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And the Versace Jeans Couture line, licensed to Swinger International, will end, leaving no subbrand.
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Bertelli said he was “very excited about this new chapter with Versace, we welcome a brand that has made the history of fashion and glamour as we know it today,” underscoring how it complements and does not overlap with the group’s existing portfolio.
He ticked off the business’ brand awareness, its resonance across a diversified client base and its “strong legitimacy in haute couture and across product categories,” while being balanced across the men’s and women’s categories and having “strong cultural relevance, a rich archive and solid brand equity.”
“Because of this, we believe the brand offers multiple untapped levers of growth,” said Bertelli, acknowledging that “this won’t be an overnight task.”
As reported, Emmanuel Gintzburger was confirmed as Versace’s chief executive officer.
While progressively shifting Versace’s focus toward quality, full-price sales and distribution, repositioning the brand and optimizing the retail network, the group plans to integrate processes across functions, expecting to complete the separation from previous owner Capri Holdings in the second half.
After starting the call by expressing his vicinity to people, associates, customers and stakeholders in the Middle East, group CEO Andrea Guerra said that Versace, while remaining independent, will leverage Prada Group’s platform “for all potential and possible manufacturing. Obviously, we have already started planning it.”
It was also revealed that Luca Carraro has returned to the group after a stint at Valentino as Versace’s chief operation industrial officer.
Versace will be able to rely on the Prada Group’s production pipeline, a source of pride for Patrizio Bertelli, the group’s chairman and executive director, and developed over the years. It comprises 25 industrial facilities, of which two are outside the country. “Our manufacturing platform is a key strength, supporting quality, craftsmanship and the operational agility required by the market,” he said in a statement, as he did not attend the call.
Responding to a question about the group’s recent rationalization of suppliers, Guerra said that was “a journey that really began with COVID, creating a more internal manufacturing infrastructure,” setting up three factories from that moment until today. “We are working on the renovation [of a plant] and on a new one. We have cut the weaker. We have given more work to more organized players, and I think this is the journey that has been the characteristic of our history since we were born.”
Versace sales last year amounted to 684 million euros and 2026 “will be a year of transition for the brand as we navigate the change in creative leadership,” said chief financial officer Andrea Bonini, anticipating “some degree of top line contraction.” Mulier succeeds Dario Vitale, who exited Versace after only one collection, unveiled in September.
“The group has taken decisive action on operating expenses, generating initial synergies and savings that will be selectively reinvested in strategic areas.” Versace incurred operating losses last year, and “it is expected to continue incurring operating losses of not dissimilar magnitude” in 2026, Bonini forecast.
Prada Group Performance
At Prada Group overall, 2025 revenues rose 5 percent to 5.72 billion euros compared with 5.43 billion euros in 2024. The Versace deal was completed on Dec. 2, and excluding its contribution of 65 million euros since then, the group’s organic sales growth has a constant currency exchange of 8 percent. This represented 20 consecutive quarters of growth for the Italian luxury group.
Net profit rose 2 percent to 852 million euros compared with 839 million euros in 2024.
“With respect to profitability, ex-Versace, we continue to aim for organic margin progression,” said Guerra, anticipating that Versace’s consolidation will drive a dilutive effect on the group’s operating profit margin in 2026, “with a target to resume progressive improvement” from the full-year 2027.
In 2025, the retail channel was up 5 percent to 5.1 billion euros. Organic sales rose 8.2 percent, driven by like-for-like, full-price sales.
Retail Sales by Brand
At constant currency, the Prada brand’s retail sales decreased 1 percent to 3.4 billion euros and inched up 0.4 percent in the fourth quarter supported particularly by Mainland China, Korea, Japan and the Americas.
Among the key openings over the year, Prada cited new hospitality venues in Shanghai and Singapore, a store in New York and Prada Alexandra House in Hong Kong.
Miu Miu retail sales climbed 35 percent at constant currency to 1.5 billion euros, against exceptionally high comparatives last year, when the business was up 93 percent. In the fourth quarter, retail sales rose 20 percent, compared with an 84 percent increase in the same period in 2024. Growth remained well-balanced across categories and regions.
“It’s obvious, looking to the trend in the last four quarters, that we have begun our growth normalization journey that will continue during 2026,” said Guerra.
Guerra said another five to 10 Miu Miu stores will open in 2026, but “the big progression in terms of space expansion is basically over.” The total number of units for that brand will hover at around 170 to 175, he added.
Church’s was up 7 percent to 34 million euros, driven by like-for-like sales.
In 2025, wholesale was up 3 percent organically to 471 million euros. “We had the necessity to keep back some inventory not to be shipped to Saks [Global] at the end of 2025 and we resumed shipments at the beginning of 2026, this is also why in the fourth quarter [this channel] was a little bit less than our normal standard and average,” said Guerra.
On current trading, he said the “trajectory for Prada is improving,” and the expectation is for “a solid year.” Asked about the Middle East in terms of opening and closing stores, Guerra said “it’s a daily evolution,” and that “the most difficult situations are in Qatar, in Bahrain and in Kuwait.”
Performance by Market
In 2025, the group’s retail sales in the Asia-Pacific region delivered a good progression over the year, closing up 6 percent at 1.7 billion euros. Organically, they grew 10 percent at constant currency.
In terms of the Chinese cluster for the Prada brand, “there was a significant quarter-on-quarter improvement, which is driven by positive domestic consumption and better travel spending. Europeans were flattish for the year, slightly softer in the fourth quarter versus the third quarter with local demand remaining more resilient, and the North American and the Japanese clusters were positive,” said Bonini.
Guerra said “we have been very successful with new customers, which is something that we were not seeing for quite a while in China. I don’t want to say that China is back, but the steps and the progression have gone in the proper direction.”
European retail sales gained 2 percent reaching 1.56 billion euros, and rose 4 percent organically.
The Americas registered consistent double-digit growth throughout the year, closing up 12 percent to 932 million euros, supported by local demand. Organically, the region was up 15 percent.
At current exchange, Japan was flat at 656 million euros, but was up 3 percent organically, against exceptional high tourism last year.
The Middle East was up 11 percent to 251 million euros. Organic growth was 15 percent.
Analysts React
In an analysis, Thomas Chauvet at Citi said the results were “broadly in line with expectations, and despite positive current trading commentary, we still see limited visibility on the magnitude of any potential growth acceleration at the Prada brand this year. At the same time, risks of further growth normalization at Miu Miu persist, and visibility remains low on both the scale and timing of the required turnaround at Versace. As a result, we expect the share price reaction to be muted, particularly within a sector that has remained out of favor so far this year.” The consensus of a 9 percent increase in 2026 group sales excluding Versace and of an operating profit of 1.37 billion euros is expected “to remain broadly unchanged,” with Versace’s consolidation likely to contribute 620 million euros to 640 million euros of revenue and an earnings before interest and taxes loss of between 40 and 50 million euros.
Carole Madjo at Barclays said the group’s “solid” results “came in slightly above expectations,” as fourth-quarter revenues were 3 percent above consensus and up 10 percent at current currencies.