ROME, December 20, Reuters -- Organic growth is the priority for Italian luxury group Ermenegildo Zegna, CEO said on Monday as the company makes its debut on the New York Stock Exchange.
Zegna was founded in 1910 as a textile company and now a leader in luxury menswear, and has turned to investors to fund expansion.
Gildo Zegna told the Daily newspaper La Stampa that the priority is organic growth more than acquisitions, and we will talk about integrations that follow our values and our DNA.
In a separate interview with the La Repubblica newspaper, he said the group would consider acquisitions if the opportunity arises, but added that the company has so much scope to grow organically that it is not in rush to buy.
The Zegna family retained 66% of the combined business after its merger with a U.S. blank-cheque company. The merged company is expected to have an initial enterprise value of $3.1 billion and an initial market value of $2.4 billion.
CEO Zegna told La Stampa that the listing would help the company to acquire scale in a more competitive market, where size is important and that it would also boost brand value.
Zegna did not rule out a listing in Italy, but there is no plans to do so, according to a separate interview with Corriere della Sera.
The group has managed to survive the COVID 19 epidemic by cutting 100 million euros $112.52 million in fixed costs, he told La Stampa.