Roberto Cavalli Sees Red: €23.3 Million Loss Projected for 2024

Roberto Cavalli raises its turnover, but fattens its losses. The Italian high-end company closed 2024 in the red by €23.3 million, up nearly 15% from 2023’s €20.3 million, according to Il Messaggero.

The company, wholly controlled by Emirati businessman Hussain Sajwani since 2019, ended the last financial year with sales of €79 million, up 5% on the previous year.

The improvement noted in revenues is entirely due to the growth recorded in the company’s retail channels, i.e. own stores and online. The online channel represents only 7% of the total business. Roberto Cavalli’s gross operating profit (ebitda) at the end of 2024 was negative €20 million, two million more than a year earlier.

Despite the poor performance of the business, the owner of the company (who controls the company through the company Auriel Investment) has committed to financially support the group until 2027, when it should leave behind the red numbers and reach break even.

Roberto Cavalli closed 2024 in growth thanks to the performance of its own channels

Roberto Cavalli, the firm of maximalist luxury, feline prints and fitted silhouette, confirmed last June that it has opened a search process for a buyer. The company did not detail whether the current owner is pursuing a full or partial sale of the capital.

Founded by Florentine designer Roberto Cavalli in the 1970s, the brand reached its peak in the 1990s and 2000s, when it became synonymous with glamorous excess, pop muses and red carpets. After several attempts at repositioning, in 2015, Italian fund Clessidra acquired 90% of the company with the intention of restructuring it, but the efforts failed to reverse the losses.

Just one year earlier, the company had a turnover of €210 million, but closed the year with €12 million in negative. The financial situation progressively deteriorated, and in 2019 the U.S. subsidiary filed for Chapter 11, which meant closing its own stores in the country.

That same year, Emirati businessman Hussain Sajwani acquired 100% of Roberto Cavalli through his company Vision Investments, part of Auriel Investment. The transaction, valued at around €160 million according to industry sources, allowed the company to avoid bankruptcy through a debt restructuring agreement approved by the Italian courts.