WSJ : Activist Investor Urges Kohl’s to Replace Board Members

Activist Investor Urges Kohl’s to Replace Board Members
Hedge fund Macellum targets chairman, other long-serving directors at department-store chain

An activist investor that has long targeted Kohl’s Corp. KSS -2.26% is ratcheting up the pressure, calling on the department-store chain to make changes to its board or face another proxy fight.

Macellum Advisors GP LLC, which has a roughly 5% stake in Kohl’s, is urging the company to replace three or more long-tenured directors, including its chairman, after sale talks collapsed earlier this year and as the share price sags, people familiar with the matter said.

Kohl’s shares are down by nearly half this year as consumers tighten their wallets, denting sales at retailers such as Kohl’s that sell apparel and other discretionary items. The Menomonee Falls, Wis., company now has a market value of about $3 billion.

The New York hedge fund held unsuccessful talks with Kohl’s over the past few months to try to come to an agreement to make board changes, the people said. The fund didn’t press for other commitments.

Macellum has told the company it will run another proxy fight next year if no settlement is reached, the people said.

“We believe there is an urgent need for change now, rather than waiting another eight months for another contested election at the 2023 annual meeting,” Macellum Chief Executive Jonathan Duskin wrote in a draft of an open letter to be sent to Kohl’s shareholders that was viewed by The Wall Street Journal.

Mr. Duskin wrote in the letter that Kohl’s Chairman Peter Boneparth, who took on the role earlier this year after having served on the board since 2008, appears to be “a root cause of the board’s poor oversight and insular thinking.” He also criticized other long-serving members of the board for having no retail experience.

Kohl’s said it was disappointed by Macellum’s latest move. “Kohl’s board and management have regularly engaged with Macellum during the last two years, including numerous occasions since the annual shareholders meeting and several times this quarter, to hear their perspective,” the company said in a statement. “These engagements have been unproductive and a distraction from running the business during a challenging retail environment.”

The window to nominate board members at Kohl’s is open from mid-January to mid-February. Should Macellum move forward with a proxy fight, it would be the third year in a row the fund has targeted the retailer.

Macellum, which has a focus on retail, nominated nine directors early last year—including Mr. Duskin—along with three other activists. In a settlement in April 2021, Kohl’s agreed to add two directors from the activists’ slate, along with an independent director who received the blessing of the investor group.

Macellum then attempted to take full control of the Kohl’s board early this year, nominating 10 directors, and pushed for other changes such as selling some of its real estate and leasing it back. The hedge fund also pushed for a sale of the company outright.

The company launched a strategic review and had attracted suitors including Sycamore Partners and Canada’s Hudson’s Bay Co. when shareholders voted on the competing board slates in May. Shareholders re-elected all of the company’s 13 directors.

It later entered exclusive talks to be sold to Vitamin Shoppe parent Franchise Group Inc. but called them off in July amid rising interest rates and a choppy economic backdrop. Kohl’s said its management team would stay focused on its plan to boost sales by adding Sephora makeup shops to its locations and beefing up its loyalty program.

Franchise Group and Kohl’s had been discussing a deal at roughly $60 a share; Kohl’s stock closed Wednesday at $26.41.

Revenue at Kohl’s for the quarter ended July 30 dropped 8.1% year-over-year to $4.09 billion. The company’s net income fell 63% to $143 million.

In late September, Ancora Holdings, another of the hedge funds that participated in the push to shake up the Kohl’s board in 2021, sought the removal of Chief Executive Michelle Gass and Mr. Boneparth. Ancora holds a 2.5% stake in Kohl’s.

Corrections & Amplifications
Macellum Advisors GPLLC was identified incorrectly as Marcellum in a subheadline that accompanied an earlier version of this article. (Corrected on Oct. 12)

FT : Moncler chief Remo Ruffini talks taste

Moncler chief Remo Ruffini talks taste
The chairman and chief executive loves motocross, Bloody Marys and his monochromatic wardrobe

My personal style signifier is navy, navy and more navy clothing, though with different fabrics, fitting and stitching depending on whether I’m at the office or it’s the weekend. My bespoke double-breasted jackets by Umit Benan hide those extra kilos and never need to be ironed. I am also a fan of long-sleeved James Perse T-shirts.

The last thing I bought and loved was a Specialized Turbo Levo e-bike. I love mountain biking – and particularly downhill – but this e-bike makes the uphill a little easier. I’ve used it in Chamonix, St Moritz, Sardinia and Ibiza, though I am always very careful because you can get up to really fast speeds.

The place that means a lot to me is St Moritz. I’ve been going since childhood, and I love to spend time there in any season. I used to come only in winter for skiing, but now I come for the hiking and biking too. It’s where I can get out of the office and be creative. In fact, the trees there were the inspiration for the Human Forest show we created for New York Fashion Week in 2013.

I never travel without navy-blue New Balance sneakers that I can walk around in for an hour before heading to a dinner. Also, I always have a blue blazer that doesn’t wrinkle, and charging cables for my devices. I carry it all in an assortment of Valextra bags.

In my fridge you’ll always find the makings of a Virgin Mary – tomato juice, spicy Tabasco, and Worcestershire sauce. You’ll also find specialty ventresca tuna – or red tuna belly – from Sardinia. I like to have very cold sake and Kurni, a red wine from the Marche region. And, of course, my favourite: Gorgonzola cheese.

The best book I’ve read in the past year is a biography of Leonardo Del Vecchio, founder and former chairman of Luxottica, the great Italian eyewear brand. He recently passed away, and his life story and the global brand he built are both so inspiring.

The podcast I’m listening to is How I Built This with the co-founder of WeWork, Miguel McKelvey. It’s an incredible story, especially when it covers how they grew too fast. I always learn something new with this podcast that’s focused on entrepreneurs and innovators.

My style icons are two opposites: Gianni Agnelli for his bespoke tailoring and inherent sense of style, and Julian Schnabel for a sort of casual extravagance. Gianni Agnelli was known for his elegant attire – white shirts, his watch worn over the cuff, a gold bracelet – while I will never forget seeing Julian Schnabel at the Place Vendôme in his pyjamas.

The best gift I’ve received is a dried four-leaf clover that I found in a book that was given to me by a dear friend. As it turned out, the clover was the real gift – and it was my first. 

The last music I downloaded was Satie’s “Gnossienne No 1”, performed by Kid Francescoli. My favourite piece ever, though, is Michael Nyman’s “Time Lapse” – a sort of a theme tune for me. I played it the day Moncler was listed on the Italian stock exchange, in Milan. It’s always the soundtrack to the most important moments of the company.

I have a collection of black, brutalist-inspired Japanese pottery at my mountain home. I love Japan – the people, the style, the energy and the serenity – and these pieces remind me of it.

The best souvenir I’ve brought home is ricotta salata cheese from Porto Bello restaurant in Salina. They make a fantastic spaghetti al fuoco with cherry tomatoes, garlic, chilli pepper and their wonderful baked ricotta. Their dish is unique, and while I’ve tried to copy it at home, I don’t seem to have much luck.

The grooming staple I’m never without is Biologique Recherche skin creams, and also my electric trimmer. I’ve cut my own hair and my beard for the past 30 years.

I’ve recently rediscovered off-road Enduro bike racing. One of my sons pushed me back to the sport – one that’s not the easiest because it’s so physically demanding. I now have a Husqvarna 300 Two-Stroke bike that I’ve taken to Enduro Republic, a special club where they tune the bikes, in Douro, near Piacenza. I’ve also done motocross in Sardinia, but the sport isn’t allowed in so many places.

The thing I couldn’t do without is my many pairs of glasses from Maison Bonnet. The frames are black matte, and they’re custom-fitted and designed for me. I have regular prescription pairs and sunglasses. They always get the fit just right.

An indulgence I would never forgo is pizza, especially from Concettina ai Tre Santi in Naples. The young owner, Ciro Oliva, is highly creative. He does a 12-course tasting menu, which he serves you himself.

The place I am excited to go to next is Bhutan. I want to do a hiking tour, but I have to do it when I have 10 to 14 days free, which isn’t very often.

The last item of clothing I added to my wardrobe was a navy cashmere sweatshirt that is actually a Moncler prototype. It is incredibly soft and fits perfectly. I was hoping we could produce these quickly, but this type of cashmere yarn is quite rare. 

My favourite building is Milan’s Velasca Tower by Studio BBPR, which was built in the ’50s. It’s a brutalist skyscraper that’s not overdesigned and was very important at the time it was built.

The objects I would never part with are my little red coral horns called cornicelli, which my wife gave me 25 years ago. They are my good luck charm and are always in my pocket.

The artists whose work I would collect if I could include Louise Bourgeois, Pablo Picasso – particularly his black-and-white paintings – and Lucio Fontana. I like postwar Italian art, where you can see the progression towards minimalism.

My favourite room in my house is my bedroom in Milan. I can be myself here, in solitude, away from the rest of the world. This room is a very dark brown with oak fumé and a modern brass and glass wall that separates the bedroom from the dressing area. In the mountains, my favourite room is my living room for the beautiful views.

My wellbeing guru is Mirko Lundi, a Pilates guru who is helping me to avoid back surgery. He has taught me how to use the Reformer and works on strengthening my back muscles and improving my posture. As I mentioned, I love pizza and Gorgonzola, so no nutritionist will take me on. 

The works of art that changed everything for me were by the Japanese artist Kazuo Shiraga, who transformed “classical” painting in the ’50s. He created large-scale works with his feet by swinging on a rope suspended from the ceiling.

In another life, I would have been an interior designer or an architect. I am passionate about this world and have worked with the designers Gilles & Boissier on over 200 projects for our business. We try to figure out different experiences for different cities – a local approach, but with a global vision for the brand.

The best bit of advice I ever received was when we went public: “Take care of the brand – don’t follow the sales and revenues.”

FT : Twitter employees ‘battle-weary’ as Elon Musk deal drags on

Twitter employees ‘battle-weary’ as Elon Musk deal drags on
Tesla chief’s stop-start plan to buy social media platform for $44bn has left staff in an uncomfortable limbo

On the walls of Twitter’s offices around the world — in San Francisco, London and New York — neon signs light up encouraging employees to #lovewhereyouwork.

But over the past six months, the mantra has become difficult for many to live by. Since April, Twitter staff have become Silicon Valley’s most pitied workforce, left in an uncomfortable limbo after Elon Musk made his uninvited $44bn bid for the platform, before attempting to pull out of the deal, all while goading them and discrediting their work.

Now, one of their sharpest critics may become their owner. Last week Musk revived his Twitter buyout plans, and a Delaware judge postponed a legal dispute between the two parties, giving them until October 28 to reach a resolution on the sale.

What next? Already attrition at Twitter, which has more than 7,000 staffers, has risen dramatically, according to insiders. Those remaining are weighing up whether they will stay on if a deal closes to see what a Musk reign looks like or jump ship immediately.

Some employees believe the Tesla chief executive’s reputation could reinvigorate Twitter’s slow pace of product innovation, particularly away from the pressure of the public markets. However, others fear being at the mercy of a whimsical billionaire without a clear plan for what they believe to be a vital tool for democracy.

“Twitter staff are battle-weary,” said Bruce Daisley, former head of Twitter’s operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. “It is Musk’s capricious and unpredictable interventions that have coloured the whole of the Twitter experience.” But matters like Twitter’s policies on speech are “serious and material”, he added.

Musk’s takeover bid in April immediately sparked a backlash inside Twitter. According to several recent staff, the company’s watercooler Slack channel — a messaging group meant to be the online version of chatting around the office watercooler — was flooded with messages from anxious employees, concerned about Musk’s libertarian politics and his promise to loosen Twitter’s content moderation.

Others have noted the long hours and working culture encouraged by Musk at his existing companies was at odds with Twitter’s more relaxed, remote working bent.

As the saga dragged on, this was coupled with confusion over Twitter’s future direction amid a wider economic slowdown and an advertising slump. “You have documented statements that say ‘this is our strategy, our priorities’. Are we still working on those or not?” one recent employee said.

Meanwhile, leaks of Slack channel conversations and internal divisions have exacerbated tensions between rank-and-file employees and management.

Twitter executives have warned staff that indiscretion could affect the deal and have frustrated employees by keeping silent about the process. This led some staff to feel like they were being silenced and not kept sufficiently abreast of events.

“I think [management] followed a very traditional deal playbook in both their internal and external communications. The problem is this was never going to be a traditional deal process . . . I wish they had been more aggressive in defending the company,” one former executive said.

“Most people are likely leaving, not just because of Musk — because of the very clear lack of regard for any of us,” said one senior employee, adding that many staff were “mobilising” by setting up mini support groups among themselves and discussing future plans.

Some employees may have no choice about their future either way. If a deal closes, the current board will no longer exist and it will be up to Musk to decide on the governance structure.

Text messages made public as part of the legal battle between the two sides revealed that Musk has been inundated with recommendations from his associates of high profile executives to populate Twitter’s inner circle, such as former Uber chief business officer Emil Michael and Benchmark venture capitalist Bill Gurley. Musk only floated one name himself as a potential board member, chat show host Oprah Winfrey. He also suggested that he would not appoint any C-suite management positions at all, writing that he would personally “oversee software development”.

Meanwhile, Musk told Twitter staff at a Q&A session in June that its business needed to “get healthy” and undergo a “rationalisation of headcount and expenses”. 

Those working in marketing and communications in particular are acutely aware their time at the company may be coming to an end, according to company insiders. In 2020, Musk dissolved Tesla’s press relations team, saying: “Other companies spend money on advertising & manipulating public opinion, Tesla focuses on the product.”

Some in the industry warn a sudden brain drain could leave Twitter’s systems and user security vulnerable.

“One person can leave and the system would be replaceable. But if all of a sudden all these people leave, or are fired, the possibility of a big mistake dramatically increases,” said Jason Goldman, a former Twitter board member and product chief.

Going forward, staff have been analysing Musk’s previous comments for signs of how he will shake up the company. Last week, he tweeted that “software engineering, server operations & design will rule the roost” at Twitter under his ownership, and promised “very rapid product evolution”. 

Alongside previous promises to “defeat the spam bots” and “authenticate all humans”, Musk has also recently said buying Twitter will be “an accelerant to creating X, the everything app” — signalling grander plans to incorporate messaging, payments and commerce into a super app.

But it is Musk’s plans to change what Twitter employees believe to be nuanced and well-informed rules on speech that have sparked the most consternation internally. While Twitter is reviewing its own policies on permanent bans around breaches such as repeatedly sharing misinformation, Musk has said he would do away with permanent bans altogether and allow all but illegal content on the platform. He previously told the Financial Times he would reinstate former president Donald Trump to the platform.

“Am worried not so much about the Elon takeover and the consequences in the workplace, more so that he will turn this platform into a political weapon for harassing everybody,” wrote one employee on the anonymous message board Blind, where users’ place of work is verified using company email addresses.

In particular, some staff question whether the unpredictable nature of Musk, who recently got into a Twitter spat with Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy after proposing the war in Ukraine be solved by ceding territory to Russia, is at odds with controlling a platform that has global implications for political speech.

Musk upset staff when singling out senior Twitter figures for criticism, including policy chief Vijaya Gadde, a move that triggered a barrage of attacks from the entrepreneur’s loyal online followers. Others pointed to text messages made public that show the billionaire getting angry when Twitter chief executive Parag Agrawal asked him not to tweet out “Is Twitter dying?”

“Someone pushed back on Elon in the softest way possible and then he threw a temper tantrum,” the former executive said.

“This is what staffers are afraid about. Who is possibly going to tell Elon that he is not right because then he is going to fire you or turn his hoards of followers against you?”

>>> US After Hours Summary: AMAT -1.1% lowering guidance is the big headline, dragging down some chip equipment peers; QDEL +7.3% higher on bullish guidance; BMRN +3.4% as FDA accepts resubmission of BLA


After Hours Summary: AMAT -1.1% lowering guidance is the big headline, dragging down some chip equipment peers; QDEL +7.3% higher on bullish guidance; BMRN +3.4% as FDA accepts resubmission of BLA

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: QDEL +7.3% (guides Q3 revs well above consensus), DCT +7.1%, VSCO +3.2%, ORC +1.9% (also increases repurchase authorization by 4.3 mln shares), TWO +0.3%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: DWAC +6.2% (Google approves Truth Social for its Play Store, according to Axios), BMRN +3.4% (FDA accepts resubmission of BLA for its investigational AAV gene therapy), LIAN +2.2% (LIAN and BBIO provide update on Truseltiq), KLIC +1.4% (in sympathy with lowered AMAT guidance), SSSS +1.3% (provides Q3 prelim investment portfolio update), IGT +0.8% (signs contract extension with the Georgia Lottery), LUV +0.7% (technician union votes in favor of new labor deal), MN +0.3% (reports Sept AUM), MLNK +0.1% (EFX expands integration of The Work Number with MLNK), EGO +0.1% (reports Q3 gold production)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: TMST -1.2%, AMAT -1.1% (lowers guidance for OctQ due to new export regulations re China; also expects JanQ to see similar impact)

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: TTCF -6.5% (to restate earnings), SIGA -0.7% (provides update on clinical trials to assess use of TPOXX for monkeypox), GNRC -0.7% (COO to step down), KLAC -0.3% (in sympathy with lowered AMAT guidance), LRCX -0.3% (in sympathy with lowered AMAT guidance), SPNT -0.2% (names new CFO), INTC -0.1% (in sympathy with lowered AMAT guidance)

>>> US Close Dow -0,10% S&P -0,33% Nasdaq -0,09% Russell -0,30% VIX 33,57 -0,18

Closing Stock Market Summary

Today's trade was mixed with little conviction on either side of the tape. The stock market opened to modest losses before the S&P 500 tested yesterday's low, and the new low for 2022 (3568.45), where it found support from buyers. The major averages ultimately closed with losses, but little changed from the flat line. 

The stock market proved to be fairly resilient considering the hotter-than-expected September Producer Price Index (PPI) market participants received this morning. PPI was up 8.5% year-over-year while core PPI, which excludes food and energy, was up 7.2% year-over-year indicating inflation remains "sticky" at the wholesale level.

Market participants also digested the FOMC Minutes from the September meeting today, which reiterated what Fed officials have been saying recently about raising rates and keeping them at a restrictive level for longer; therefore, they didn't contain any surprises. Equities took a modest step higher in the immediate aftermath, but quickly returned to levels seen before the Minutes were released.

The Treasury market did not have a big reaction to the PPI report and showed some added improvement following the release of the FOMC Minutes for the September meeting. The 10-yr note yield fell four basis points to 3.90% despite a disappointing 10-yr note auction and the 2-yr note yield fell one basis point to 4.29%.

Apple (AAPL 138.34, -0.64, -0.5%) was an important directional driver today. It supported the market with its gains before losing steam late in the day and falling into negative territory, dragging the indices down with it. Other driving factors included a nice gain in PepsiCo (PEP 169.39, +6.80, +4.2%) after it posted better-than-expected earnings and raised its FY22 EPS guidance, the well-behaved Treasury market and gilt market, and a prevailing wait-and-see mindset in front of the Consumer Price Index report on Thursday.

Outsized gains in PepsiCo boosted the S&P 500 consumer staples sector (+0.5%) to second place on the day. Energy (+0.8%) sat in first place despite falling oil prices. WTI crude oil futures fell 2.2% to $87.22/bbl on festering concerns about a global growth slowdown.

On the flip side, the S&P 500 utilities (-3.4%) and real estate (-1.4%) sectors were the worst performers today. 

Looking ahead to Thursday, market participants will receive September CPI (consensus 0.2%; prior 0.1%) and core CPI, which excludes food and energy (consensus 0.4%; prior 0.6%), along with weekly initial jobless claims ( consensus 225,000; prior 219,000) and continuing claims (prior 1.361 million) at 8:30 a.m. ET.

Other data released tomorrow includes: weekly EIA Natural Gas Inventories (prior +129 bcf) at 10:30 a.m. ET, weekly EIA Crude Oil Inventories (prior -3.36 million) at 11:00 a.m. ET, and the September Treasury Budget (-$219.6 billion) at 2:00 p.m. ET.

Reviewing today's economic data:

  • Weekly MBA Mortgage Applications Index fell 2.0% compared to last week's 14.2% decline.
  • PPI rose 0.4% in September (consensus 0.2%) following a revised 0.2% decline in August (from 0.1%). Core PPI, excluding foods and energy, rose 0.3% in September (consensus 0.3%) following a revised 0.3% increase in August (from 0.4%)
    • The key takeaway from the report is that it shows producer inflation sticking at levels that will pressure profit margins and stoke concerns about negative pass-through effects to the consumer. In turn, that understanding will stoke concerns that there hasn't been enough improvement on the inflation front to convince the Fed to take a more guarded approach with its rate hikes.

Dow Jones Industrial Average: -19.6% YTD
S&P Midcap 400: -20.7% YTD
S&P 500: -25.0% YTD
Russell 2000: -24.8% YTD
Nasdaq Composite: -33.4% YTD

WWD : Ferragamo Family’s Portrait Milano Hospitality and Retail Project to Open

Ferragamo Family’s Portrait Milano Hospitality and Retail Project to Open in December
The 30,140-square-foot complex will feature a luxury hotel, Antonia store, Beefbar and more.

The former archbishop's seminary on Milan's Corso Venezia has been revamped by the Ferragamo family-owned Lungarno Collection company to house the Portrait Milano hospitality and retail destination.


MILAN — After a few years of behind-the-scenes work, a hidden landmark of the city whose first construction harks back to 1564 will soon become a hot-ticket hospitality and retail destination in town, courtesy of the Ferragamo family.
The fashion entrepreneurs, who successfully manage a hospitality business under the Lungarno Collection moniker, have taken their Portrait formula from Rome and Florence to Italy’s fashion capital. Maximilian Davis, creative director of the Ferragamo fashion brand, last month chose to show his first collection in the courtyard of the venue.
In the pipeline since 2013, when Lungarno Collection was established, plans for a revamp of the 30,140-square-foot space, a former archbishop’s seminary until 2002, but also a library, prison and hospital across the centuries, were teased in late 2018, but neared completion only this year.

The complex, located at the heart of Milan’s Golden Triangle luxury shopping district, is due to open on Dec. 1, hosting a luxury Portrait hotel, retail spaces and restaurants overlooking the colonnaded courtyard that connects Corso Venezia with nearby Via Sant’Andrea.
“It’s an ambitious and complex project which we have been working on for several years. I’m extremely proud to be given a chance to add a new important chapter of this 500-year history,” said Lungarno Collection president Leonardo Ferragamo, visibly emotional, during a press conference Wednesday to unveil the space.
“It’s about giving it back to the city of Milan…with the goal and ambition to turn it into an open place, so that everybody, citizens and anyone who loves the city, can enjoy it,” he added.
Ferragamo dodged questions about the investment, saying he has yet to “take stock of expenses” given the last mile until the opening in December will include small but expensive details to adjust.
Valeriano Antonioli, chief executive officer of the Ferragamos’ hospitality business, shared the president’s emotion. “I felt like a kid unwrapping presents on Christmas,” the executive said about first visiting the place, which was unlikely to be sold or leased, not to mention offered for a hospitality and retail project.
After negotiations with Milan’s municipality, the local curia and the Superintendent of Cultural Heritage, renovation works were handed to architect Michele De Lucchi, as reported. He was tasked with revamping the storied landmark, preserving its historical beauty.
He described the project as challenging in that it required all architectural layers added over the centuries be preserved and exalted, from the 16th-century colonnade to the Baroque-era portal conceived by architect Francesco Maria Richini to the external facades, whose renovation in the ’70s was reportedly attributed to Piero Portaluppi.
De Lucchi touted the Ferragamos’ ambition to return the space, approximately the same size as neighboring San Babila square, to the city.
“Whenever I sketched this place, I’d always draw groups of people crossing the square to enjoy contemporary life in an ancient place,” De Lucchi said in video broadcast at the press conference.

Inside a hotel room of Portrait Milano.
COURTESY OF LUNGARNO COLLECTION
The luxury Portrait Milano hotel is Lungarno Collection’s jewel in the crown for the project. The three-story hotel will accommodate 73 rooms, including 20 suites. On the first floor, each room opens up on the colonnaded passageway where the hotel will install private outdoor living spaces.
Revamped by the hospitality group’s go-to architect Michele Bonan, the hotel’s interior is inspired by midcentury design, a Millennial favorite, with wainscoting, light-colored walnut wood, rattan panels, larch wood flooring, as well as nods to Italian know-how and style, with leather handles and the color palette of greens and reds, as often seen in Milan apartments.
“Portrait as a brand is characterized by our ambition to deliver and interpret depictions of the cities where we are based and blend it with the portraits of the Italian and international clients enjoying the space,” said CEO Antonioli.
A render of the bar at the Portrait Milano hotel.
COURTESY OF LUNGARNO COLLECTION
The complex’s ground floor overlooking the courtyard is to welcome retail and dining spaces – including a casual and fine dining restaurant as part of the hotel.
Taking over the courtyard’s entire west wing, hip Milan retailer Antonia is opening its second Milan outpost inside the Portrait complex, with around 8,000 square feet in retail space. This confirms a 2018 report in WWD about the retailer investing in the project.
Founder Antonia Giacinti, who will continue to operate her banner in the arty Brera district, said: “Although everybody else is decamping elsewhere, outside Italy, we’ve always been in the city, Milan is our elsewhere.”
The concept store is set to carry a mix of established designers and new names for men and women, five branded concept corners in rotation and a sneaker space.
“It’s poised to become the quadrilateral of talents, discovery and emotions. It’s a place where we aim to nurture new ideas and projects, where even established [fashion] brands can express nuances they usually are unable to via their flagship stores,” Giacinti said.
The east wing will be dedicated to Beefbar’s fine dining experience, with a restaurant and cocktail bar. The Monte Carlo-based Giraudi Group which operates 20 Beefbar banners across Paris, Tulum, Dubai, Mykonos and Hong Kong, is taking its beef-leaning formula to Milan inside a ’50s-inspired space, with a bespoke menu mindful of the city’s culinary traditions.

“Beefbar is an Italian ‘brand’ that never really set foot in the country,” said Riccardo Giraudi, founder and CEO of the group. “It’s going to be a tailored experience, adapted to the identity of the place…when I first visited it I told myself I just had to open a unit here,” he said.
Ferragamo’s daughter Maria Sole’s jewelry brand, So-le Studio, and biohacking and antiage city clinic The Longevity Suite will complement Portrait’s offering, opening locations in the courtyard and the basement, respectively. The latter is due to open in spring 2023, while the young Ferragamo is debuting her first retail space in December.

WWD : Prada Launches First Fine Jewelry Line

Prada Launches First Fine Jewelry Line
Lorenzo Bertelli, head of CSR, explains that the line, called Eternal Gold, it is the first one made with 100 percent certified recycled gold by a global luxury brand.

MILAN — Prada will unveil on Wednesday its first fine jewelry line, which is breaking ground as the first one made with 100 percent certified recycled gold by a global luxury brand, said Lorenzo Bertelli, group head of corporate social responsibility.
“This was not a simple objective, and we are very happy we’ve succeeded because it allows us to set a new standard in the industry,” said Bertelli. “Right from the start we wanted to do jewelry in a different and more radical way with a strong message and offering full traceability, shifting outdated industry standards to mirror societal change.”
To mark the launch Prada is rolling out a campaign photographed by David Sims and fronted by award-winning American poet and activist Amanda Gorman; American actor, model and singer-songwriter Maya Hawke, and Dutch-Korean-Canadian musician Somi Jeon.


Classic portraits are juxtaposed with gold-gilded reflections for a “visually strong and immediate campaign, recognizably different from others in the category,” said Bertelli.
Prada has also assembled a team on the jewelry industrial division that is working on the line, which is called Eternal Gold, and helmed by Timothy Iwata as Prada jewelry director. Prior to joining Prada, Iwata was global innovation officer at Cartier.
Clearly, Miuccia Prada’s longtime passion for jewelry has been instrumental in the launch. “Timothy was surprised to see how involved and knowledgeable in the history of jewelry my mother is,” said Bertelli.
“She has fun freeing her creativity on the jewels,” he said with a knowing smile.
At the core of the collection is Prada’s signature triangle motif, which harks back to the brand’s founder Mario Prada and a focus on 18-karat gold.
The triangle appears as a clasp closure on earrings and pendants or on ribbon chokers, while its angles shape chain links and hearts or the head of a snaked bracelet. Proportions are reconsidered, with pendants supersized, for example.
A bracelet from Prada’s new fine jewelry collection.
Asked about the increasing relevance of the triangle at Prada, Bertelli said his mother started with co-creative director Raf Simons working on the logo on the fashion collections a few seasons ago, but observed that “now they are working on the abstraction of the logo and more on the shape, there’s been an evolution.”
Prices range from four figures to $60,000. The debut collection features 48 pieces, of which 10 designs are available on a made-to-order basis, which Bertelli said will be further expanded in the future.
Bertelli said 100 percent of the gold used in Prada’s fine jewelry collection is Certified Recycled Gold, meeting “Chain of Custody” standards set by the Responsible Jewelry Council.
Every step of Prada’s responsible gold and diamond production chain is verifiable and traceable —something offered by no other fine jewelry or luxury fashion house in the world, contended Bertelli.
“Prada’s recycled gold is drawn only from eligible recycled material sources, in compliance with due diligence — including industrial gold, from electronic components and postconsumer precious objects,” explained the executive. “Prada partners exclusively with those suppliers of precious metal and stones who meet the highest industry standards concerning human rights, labor safety, environmental impact and business ethics.”





A chain from Prada’s new fine jewelry collection.
Also new for fine jewelry, records of this verification have been logged on the Aura Consortium Blockchain ́s platform and can be accessed by the collection’s customers, who will be able to verify the authenticity and trace the provenance of their pieces.
Prada, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton and Compagnie Financière Richemont joined forces to establish the Aura Blockchain Consortium in April 2021, with the aim of promoting the use of a single blockchain solution open to all luxury brands worldwide to help consumers trace the provenance and authenticity of luxury goods. They were joined as founding members by the OTB Group and Mercedes-Benz.
Bertelli observed that the reduction of mining of new gold benefits the environment and human rights, and while traceability of diamond origins is conventionally only possible with stones of 0.5 carat or larger, Prada expands the concept, for the first time, to stones of all sizes.
The collection is the latest step in Prada’s commitment to sustainability and responsible practices, such as the shift to its recycled Re-Nylon production.

The prototypes are created internally but the jewelry is all made in Italy, almost entirely in the Valenza goldsmith hub. Hand stone-setting, cutting and polishing are combined with laser engraving and 3D print prototyping.
Prada started on this project around two years ago, revealing it at the group’s Capital Markets Day in November 2021, and Bertelli said in that time he has learned “very different dynamics” compared to the fashion industry. For example, he is now aware of clusters of “customers that are not really interested in fashion but who buy only jewelry.” This was reflected in a strategy mapped out for the launch to avoid the mistake of targeting the same customer, he observed.
The next step for the brand is a high jewelry collection.
The collection will be distributed in Prada stores only from Wednesday in Europe, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, the U.S., China, Japan and Korea in cities ranging from Milan, Rome and Paris to London, Dubai, Beverly Hills, New York, Tokyo, Seoul, Shanghai and Beijing, among others.
It will also be available online from Oct. 17 in selected countries in Europe, the United Arab Emirates, the U.S., China, Japan and Korea.

FT : Human-to-rat brain tissue implant boosts psychiatric disease research

Human-to-rat brain tissue implant boosts psychiatric disease research
Stanford university experiments offer ‘exciting’ system for modelling disorders and neural development

Scientists researching ways to treat psychiatric diseases have successfully implanted human brain tissue into newborn rats, where it grew neural connections that stimulated the rodents’ awareness of the outside world.

The experiments at Stanford University in California are the most successful attempts yet to get human neurons to thrive and function inside the brains of animals, after more than two decades of research around the world.

In one test, the human cells in the rat brains became electrically active in synchrony with puffs of air blown at their whiskers. In another, pulses of blue light were directed towards the human neurons in the hybrid brain to train the rats to associate this with the availability of drinking water.

After two weeks, light directed into the human neurons sent the rodents straight to the water spout, showing that the implanted cells were engaging with the reward-seeking circuits of the rat brains and influencing their behaviour in a specific way.

“Our mission is trying to understand psychiatric diseases at the biological level so we can find effective therapies,” said Sergiu Pașca, project leader and Stanford’s professor of psychiatry and behavioural sciences.

Madeline Lancaster, group leader at the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, England who was not involved in the research, called it an “exciting” system for modelling brain disorders and neural development.

The research was published on Wednesday in Nature magazine.

The work builds on more than a decade of research into human brain organoids, sometimes called “mini-brains” though neuroscientists dislike the term.

These three-dimensional cerebral structures a few millimetres across are produced from stem cells derived from skin, which are treated with a biochemical cocktail. The organoid assembles into a structure with many of the features of a real brain.

But the absence of a blood supply or sensory input in a lab dish stops them from developing beyond a certain point. This led the Stanford team to implant their organoids into newborn rats from a strain with no immune system, which would allow them to grow without rejection.

Cells from the rat brain then migrated into the human tissue, forming blood vessels and supplying nutrients. At the same time, the organoids formed connections with structures in the host brain including the thalamus which relays sensory information to the cortex.

The scientists watched for changes in the rats’ social behaviour. Perhaps surprisingly, there was no observable difference between implanted animals and controls.

Although human neurons filled about 30 per cent of one brain hemisphere, they produced neither improvement nor deterioration in the rodents’ memory and cognitive functioning.

As a test of the technology’s ability to show the molecular effects of brain disease, the team made organoids from people with Timothy syndrome, a rare genetic condition associated with autism and epilepsy.

When a Timothy organoid was implanted into one side of the rat brain and an organoid from a healthy person put into the other hemisphere, the researchers found that the former developed much smaller neurons with fewer connections to neighbouring cells.

Pașca said his team had been “very preoccupied from the beginning by the ethical implications of this work”, with bioethicists at Stanford and elsewhere consulted about the research.

Lancaster, who in 2011 created the world’s first brain organoid, stressed that she had no fears about “whether the human transplants would cause the animal to become more human”.

“The size of these transplants is small and their overall organisation is still lacking,” she said. “There are minimal concerns around their potential for higher cognitive functions.”

FT : ‘Everything in UK is on sale,’ says US private equity executive

‘Everything in UK is on sale,’ says US private equity executive
Ares Management’s Blair Jacobson expects US buyers to take advantage of weak British currency

The plummeting value of sterling means that “everything in the UK is on sale”, according to a top executive at US private markets giant Ares Management.

Blair Jacobson, co-head of European credit at Ares, said he “absolutely” expected to see US investors doing more deals in the UK to take advantage of the weak currency. “It’s a pretty big difference if you have US dollar-denominated funds,” he told the FT’s Due Diligence Live event in London on Wednesday.

A pioneer in private lending, Ares has financed a number of buyouts of listed companies after banks stepped back from the market. Traditional lenders retreated after struggling to sell on debt for deals that they committed to finance early this year.

The pound has been trading at its lowest levels against the US dollar since the 1980s in recent weeks after chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng announced a package of unfunded tax cuts in his September “mini” Budget.

US private equity groups have been on a UK dealmaking spree for several years. Clayton, Dubilier & Rice bought supermarket chain Wm Morrison last year and UK-listed security group G4S was taken private by its North American rival Allied Universal, which is backed by US buyouts group Warburg Pincus and the Canadian pension fund Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec. Blackstone bought Bourne Leisure, which runs Haven holiday parks, last year.

But such activity has slumped this year as the economic outlook has darkened and rising interest rates have made it harder and more expensive to borrow for deals.

Blair Effron, co-founder of the investment bank Centerview Partners, said at the FT event that private equity dealmaking would be the first to recover. “The first wave of M&A coming out of this is private equity-driven not corporate-driven,” he said, adding that he did not expect the pound to fall to parity with the dollar and that the UK would recover from what he called a “self-inflicted” economic blow.

Dealmaking is likely to increasingly involve listed companies being taken private, Jacobson said. “The delisting trend will continue . . . we’ve been major beneficiaries of that trend.”

Brad Hyler, a managing partner at Brookfield, said during the same panel that the same was true for listed real estate investment trusts in Europe. Rising inflation has made it more costly to construct new properties, Hyler said, making cut-price portfolios of buildings more attractive. However, he said, it was difficult to find financing for large deals.

Jacobson was also critical of what he called “absentee ownership” from US-based private equity groups that bought up UK companies and oversaw them from across the Atlantic without having an office in the country.

And he said negotiating the Takeover Panel’s requirements on buying UK-listed companies could be difficult. “You’re really limited in terms of the information you can get, the number of parties you can bring into the fold,” he said.

As the pension funds that have poured billions into private equity became increasingly unwilling or unable to keep doing so at the same pace, Jacobson said, private capital groups were turning to investors in the Middle East for new cash.

He had been in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi and Dubai recently, he said. “They’re cash-rich” and are “taking a fairly long-term view”.