Luxury production consortium Gruppo Florence expands via five acquisitions

By

Dominique Muret

Translated by
Nicola Mira

Published
May 5, 2022

In two years, Gruppo Florence has managed to pool together 12 Italian producers, creating a centre of manufacturing excellence for luxury goods. The group, set up in 2020 by Francesco Trapani (formerly with Bulgari and LVMH) in association with a consortium of investors, has in fact announced five new acquisitions, in addition to the seven companies it already comprised.
 

The five new SMEs that have joined Gruppo Florence are: CAM, a family company based in Bergamo specialised in producing high-end apparel, led by Giorgio Corrente; Confezioni Elledue, founded in 1976 by Maria Grazia Livi near Arezzo, Tuscany, and Turin-based Frediani, a company founded in 1992 by Massimo Frediani, both outerwear producers, the former in the casual/sportswear segment, the latter in the couture one; Parmamoda, a former prototyping and model-making school set up in Parma in 1999 under the aegis of sisters Francesca and Giovanna Bertagna, which has evolved into in a high-end apparel producer with a site in Rovigo; and Pigolotti, a former garment manufacturer founded in 1976 in Perugia, now transformed into a maker of prototypes and samples.
 
The founders of Gruppo Florence - investment funds VAM Investments, Fondo Italiano d'Investimento and Italmobiliare - hold a 65% stake in the luxury production consortium, while the remaining 35% is in the hands of the founding families and owners of the 12 companies acquired by Gruppo Florence. The consortium, headed by CEO Attila Kiss and President Francesco Trapani, generates a revenue of €145 million. Through the latest and future new acquisitions, its revenue is expected to reach €400 million by the end of 2022, while employing over 2,000 people, as Gruppo Florence indicated in a press release.

The consortium's other members are: knitwear manufacturer Metaphor; fabric producer Antica Valserchio; Giuntini, a producer of outerwear and light fabrics; Ciemmeci Fashion Srl, specialised in leather and fur; Mely’s Maglieria Srl, another knitwear producer; Manifatture Cesari, a jersey specialist; and Emmegi, a producer of outerwear and casual apparel.