Valentino CEO exits amid profit slump; Kering option raises stakes for 2025 reset
Bottom Line Impact
Swift leadership installation and platform leverage can stabilize sales within 1 to 2 quarters and set up a 150 to 300 bps EBITDA margin rebuild into 2026, strengthening competitive position and brand equity ahead of any potential Kering control move.
Key Facts
5- CEO Jacopo Venturini stepped down effective Wednesday by mutual agreement
- 2024 EBITDA declined 22 percent to €246m; sales fell 3 percent to €1.31bn
- Mayhoola remains majority owner; Kering acquired 30 percent in 2023 with an option to take full control by 2028
- Operating underperformance in 2024 implies roughly 190 to 220 bps EBITDA margin compression versus prior year
- Management transition coincides with a critical new product cycle in 2025 under the new creative direction
Time Horizons
Key Roles Affected
Executive Summary
Valentino faces a leadership vacuum as CEO Jacopo Venturini departs following a weak 2024, intensifying execution risk ahead of a critical product cycle and potential Kering integration. The next 90 days will determine whether the brand stabilizes margins and momentum or cedes share to faster-moving peers, with governance between Mayhoola and Kering now pivotal.
Actionable Insights
Immediate Actions (Next 30-90 days)
Appoint an interim CEO with merchandising and retail P and L authority within 14 days and launch a 90 day stabilization plan targeting 100 bps margin preservation via opex deferrals, inventory pruning, and markdown discipline
Rationale: Rapid authority and clarity reduces wholesale pullback risk and protects cash as new collections approach
Role affected:Valentino board chair
Urgency level:immediate
Stand up a weekly cash and inventory war room; cut non critical capex by 20 percent for the next two quarters, target 200 bps improvement in markdown rate, and lower weeks of supply by 1.5 to 2.0 weeks by end of Q2
Rationale: Liquidity and inventory discipline extend runway for a product led rebound and margin rebuild
Role affected:CFO
Urgency level:immediate
Short-term Actions (6-12 months)
Front load a client activation program for new creative direction with VIC previews in top 20 stores, set waitlist targets of 300 to 500 clients per hero bag SKU, and allocate 60 percent of Q1 media to high intent digital and CRM
Rationale: Demand seeding now raises full price sell through by 5 to 7 points on first deliveries and buffers leadership noise
Role affected:CMO
Urgency level:short-term
Second an operating partner as interim COO, establish a joint steering committee with Mayhoola, and define 12 month integration milestones with synergy targets of €80m to €120m EBIT run rate by year 3 in sourcing, leather goods industrial platform, and tech stack
Rationale: Early operating influence de risks future control and accelerates value creation optionality under the 2028 option
Role affected:Kering EVP strategy and M and A
Urgency level:short-term
Risks & Opportunities
Primary Risks
- Prolonged leadership vacuum drives 5 to 10 percent wholesale order cuts for AW25 and elevated staff attrition
- Misalignment between business and creative timing leads to excess inventory and 150 to 250 bps margin drag
- Governance frictions between Mayhoola and Kering delay decisions and confuse market messaging
Primary Opportunities
- New creative cycle can re accelerate leather goods with 8 to 12 percent growth in 2025 if supported by VIC activation
- Platform leverage from Kering in industrial and omnichannel could add 200 to 300 bps to EBITDA margin by 2026
- Portfolio repositioning enables price architecture reset and tighter distribution that lifts brand heat and scarcity