Most people know Gucci as a luxury fashion brand, but at one point, it was also a group of companies that owned a few other brands.
Gucci operated under the Gucci Group for a few years before a multinational company fully acquired it.
Let’s dive deeper into the history of Gucci as a brand and company:
Does Gucci Own Other Brands?
Gucci was also a company under the name Gucci Group. The group owned a few other luxury fashion brands before Kering acquired it. When Kering’s stakes in Gucci came up to 99.4%, all the brands that the Gucci Group owned were acquired by Kering.
Who Owns The Gucci Brand?
The Gucci brand is owned by Kering – a French multinational luxury company.
Kering first acquired Gucci in 1999. Back then, Kering was still operating under a different company name, Pinault-Printemps-Redoute or PPR.
In May 1999, PPR purchased a 42% stake in the Gucci Group for $3 billion. This was during a long legal battle with a rival luxury company for brand ownership.
This legal battle was highly publicized and considered one of the most eventful in the luxury fashion world.
In 2003, PPR raised its stakes in Gucci to 67.6%. Then finally, in 2004, PPR raised its stakes further to 99.4%, which allowed it to gain full control and ownership of the Gucci brand and the Gucci Group.
This also meant that PPR gained ownership of all the other brands under the Gucci Group.
It was in 2013 when PPR changed its name to Kering. The CEO of Kering is French businessman Francois-Henri Pinault.
What Other Brands Are Owned By Kering?
Apart from Gucci, Kering owns many other brands. Most of these brands fall under the luxury fashion category.
Here is the timeline with the complete list of brands that Kering owns:
- 1999: Yves Saint Laurent – Kering acquired this French luxury fashion brand when the Gucci Group purchased Sanofi Beaute, the company that owned the YSL brand then.
- 1999: Sergio Rossi – This Italian footwear brand was initially bought by the Gucci Group, which in turn got acquired by Kering.
- 2000: Boucheron – Kering acquired this French jewelry and wristwatch company upon purchasing the Gucci Group.
- 2001: Bottega Veneta – This is an Italian luxury fashion brand that the Gucci Group bought. This means that Kering eventually acquired it.
- 2001: Balenciaga – The Gucci Group acquired this Spanish luxury fashion brand by buying a 91% stake. Then it was acquired by Kering upon its purchase of the Gucci Group.
- 2001: Alexander McQueen – This is a British luxury fashion brand that the Gucci Group owns as part of a joint venture with Alexander McQueen himself. Eventually, the stakes that Gucci owned were purchased by Kering.
- 2011: Brioni – This is an Italian luxury menswear brand that Kering acquired in November 2011.
- 2011: Girard-Perregaux – Kering fully acquired this Swiss luxury watch brand in 2011. Before that, the company already owned a 23% stake through a strategic partnership agreement in 2008 with the Sowind Group.
- 2011: Jeanrichard – This is another Swiss luxury watch brand that Kering fully acquired in 2011 upon its acquisition of Girard-Perregaux,
- 2012: Qeelin – This Chinese fine jewelry company was acquired by Kering in 2012 when it purchased a majority stake.
- 2013: Pomellato – This Italian jewelry company was founded in 1967 and acquired by Kering in 2013.
- 2013: Altuzarra – This is an American luxury fashion brand for women that was founded in 2008. In 2013, Kering purchased a minority stake, making it part-owner of the brand.
- 2014: Ulysse Nardin – This is a 171-year-old Swiss luxury watch brand acquired by Kering in 2014.
- 2021: Vestiaire Collective – This retail company allows consumers to buy and sell their pre-loved luxury designer items. Kering holds a 5% stake in this company.
- 2021: Cocoon – This UK-based start-up is a company that facilitates rentals of luxury designer bags. Kering announced in 2021 that it holds a stake in this company.
- 2021: Lingberg – This Danish eyewear brand was fully acquired by Kering when it purchased 100% of the stakes.
Below are other brands that Kering used to own.
- Stella McCartney – The Gucci Group acquired this high-end British brand through a joint venture and eventually became a part of Kering. In 2018, the founder Stella McCartney bought back the shares. Now the brand is owned by LVMH.
- Puma – Kering acquired the German sports brand in 2007. That is until CEO Pinault decided to spin off the brand to his other company, Groupe Artemis, so that Kering could focus on luxury brands.
- Volcom – Kering acquired this sports and lifestyle brand in 2011, then later sold it to Authentic Brands Group in 2019 to focus on luxury brands.
- Christopher Kane – This British fashion label was acquired in 2013 by Kering upon purchasing a 51% stake. In 2018, the founder took back full control of the brand.
Does Gucci Own Yves Saint Laurent?
Yves Saint Laurent is a French luxury fashion house that was founded in 1961.
Its founders were fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent, the brand’s namesake, and his partner industrialist Pierre Bergé.
The Gucci Group used to own Yves Saint Laurent.
The Gucci Group acquired Yves Saint Laurent when it purchased the Sanofi Beaute company. Of course, the ownership of YSL was transferred to Kering when it gained full control of Gucci.
Does Gucci Own Balenciaga?
Balenciaga is a Spanish luxury fashion brand founded in 1919 by designer Cristobal Balenciaga.
The Gucci Group also used to own Balenciaga.
The Gucci group purchased the brand in July 2001. It was later acquired by Kering when it purchased most of the stakes in Gucci.
Does Gucci Own Chanel?
Chanel is a French luxury fashion house founded in 1910. Its founder is designer Coco Chanel, whom the brand was named after.
Gucci does not own Chanel, and it never did.
Chanel is owned by brothers Alain and Gerard Wertheimer. They are the grandsons of Pierre Wertheimer, who used to be the business partner of Coco Chanel.
Sources:
The House Of Gucci: A Complete History And Timeline
Kering: A Timeline Behind The Building Of A Luxury Goods Conglomerate