Twinset Changes Ownership: Borletti and Quadrivio Take Over from Carlyle

Twinset, sold. US fund manager Carlyle, one of the largest in the sector, has finally sealed the sale of Twinset, after more than a decade in its portfolio. The deal, which has valued the Italian premium fashion company at €200 million ($229,9 millions), means the return of ownership of the firm to Italian hands.

The U.S. manager has finally closed the sale to the Borletti group and the Italian company Quadrivio, after several months of speculation, according to Fashion Network. Founded by Simona Barbieri and Tiziano Sgarbi in 1987, Twinset has been part of Carlyle's portfolio since 2012, when it first entered its capital.

Progressively, the U.S. group has been raising its control over the brand, first to 90% in 2015, and finally acquiring the remaining 10% two years later, in 2017.

Twinset operates a hundred stores and closed its 2023 fiscal year with a profit of 34 million euros.

Carlyle's plans to dispose of Twinset, however, have been on the table for several years now. The first time the U.S. manager tried to sell the Italian company dates back to 2020, a process it had to put on hold with the outbreak of the pandemic. Earlier this year, however, Il Sole 24 Ore reported that Quadrivio and Borletti were holding talks to buy the company.

As of today, Twinset operates a hundred stores, and posted a 2023 profit of €34 million ($39 million), on revenues of more than €200 million. The business now passes partially into the hands of Borletti, the Italian group of the family that founded the La Rinascente department store and owns part of Printemps.

Borletti also recently took a minority stake in True Religion, and the company also has stakes in other companies in the sector, such as Zimmermann and Canada's Moose Knuckles, in its portfolio.