Fashion Dealmaking Could Perk Up in 2025

There was more than a little jostling for fashion’s dealmaking spotlight as 2024 wrapped up. 

Richard Baker’s HBC closed on its long-awaited acquisition of Neiman Marcus Group just before Christmas and, on the same day, the Nordstrom family inked their agreement to take Nordstrom Inc. private.

And in the seemingly always-active game of snapping up intellectual property, WHP Global closed out the year with a deal to buy Vera Wang, while Marquee Brands brought Laura Ashley on board just as 2025 dawned.

It was a flurry of activity after what has been a relatively slow stretch for many dealmakers (outside of the brand management space, which is expected to keep building using its IP-heavy model). 

While an uncertain consumer and economy, still-high interest rates and political uncertainty held many dealmakers back in 2024, the high-stakes world of mergers and acquisitions might be starting to change. 

“M&A activity within the consumer markets industry appears to have found its footing, with growing consumer and executive confidence, easing overall financial conditions and post-election bullishness injecting confidence into the market,” said consultancy PwC in an outlook on dealmaking in the consumer space. 

The steady, but slow market reflects “experienced dealmakers’ ability to stay on strategy and realize value despite the slowdown,” PwC said.

“Companies in the industry continue to leverage divestitures to rebalance and optimize their portfolios, as well as to unwind underperforming former acquisitions,” the outlook said. “Looking forward, we expect corporates to consider M&A as a lever to help address the challenges posed by the new tariff regime, safeguard their supply chains and protect their bottom line.”

Before the U.S. election, there was also a good deal of uncertainty around how closely regulators would scrutinize big deals, particularly after the Federal Trade Commission succeeded in its effort to stop Tapestry Inc.’s $8.5 billion buyout of Capri Holdings. 

With Donald Trump in the White House, regulators are being seen as more ready to give deals the green light. 

So private equity companies that have been sitting and waiting for a better market to flip their investments might be ready to make their move if the economy holds. 

“Higher interest rates and valuation gaps have led to delayed exits within private equity portfolios,” PwC said. “Aged investments, particularly within the food and beverage and household and personal products subsectors, are likely to see liquidity events in the near future.”

In fashion, Golden Goose could be a kind of poster child for the trend.  

Permira acquired the luxury sneaker brand in 2020 and tried to make its move last June with an initial public offering that was ultimately pulled at the 11th hour amid turmoil in European stock markets.

Golden Goose said the process would be “reassessed in due course,” putting the company among those looking to make some kind of a deal. 

While the private equity players typically look to hold onto investments for three to five years, there are plenty of fashion companies that have been sitting in the big money portfolios for that long or longer.

There are also fashion companies looking to make a move for strategic reasons. 

Capri Holdings is said to be shopping Versace and Jimmy Choo with the help of Barclays, a process that’s come in the aftermath of the failed Tapestry deal and amid weakness at the company’s biggest business, Michael Kors. Tapestry, meanwhile, is said to be looking to sell its Stuart Weitzman subsidiary.

And then there are the hot players that are biding their time. 

Kim Kardashian’s Skims, which has been going from strength to strength and is now rolling out stores, is said to have laid the groundwork for an IPO.

The ultra-fast-fashion player Shein is also said to have looked at a mega IPO, although an offering on Wall Street was held up by lawmakers who are wary of the company’s Chinese roots and business model. Now the company’s IPO hopes appear to be pinned on an offering in London.

If the stars align — which is always a big if in dealmaking — 2025 just might be the year for Skims, Shein and others in fashion.