Golden Goose Group, the Italian luxury sports brand owned by British private equity firm Permira, has postponed its much-anticipated Milan stock market listing just a day before the IPO was set to be priced, according to reports.
Golden Goose announced on Tuesday that it was delaying the IPO due to a “significant deterioration in market conditions” following recent European parliament elections and the announcement of a general election in France.
The FT’s sources revealed that Golden Goose’s decision was made after a day of intense deliberations. Although the company was confident in the launch price, there were concerns that investors might quickly sell off their shares once trading began.
Golden Goose was set to price at €9.75 per share, near the lower end of its €9.50 to €10.50 range, aiming to raise approximately €600m, which would have valued the company at nearly €2bn.
Just last week, Invesco committed to purchasing €100m worth of shares as a cornerstone investor.
In an interview with Bloomberg, Mark Nelson, senior equity analyst at Killik & Co, said: “It didn’t feel like amazing timing. They are not an Hermes, they are not a Brunello Cucinelli — they are a different business in that they focus on trainers. I think it’s clearly had some weaker points to the best in class luxury brands.”
Had it proceeded, Golden Goose’s listing would have been Milan’s largest since the €599m sale of gambling company Lottomatica last May.
Permira previously faced challenges with its 2021 IPO of British boot brand Dr Martens in London, the shares of which have declined 78% since their market debut.
Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase & Co, Mediobanca and UBS Group were advising on Golden Goose’s IPO.
