Prada wishes to strengthen its management team

By

Dominique Muret

Published
Dec 23, 2015

Prada is thinking about a new organisational model to try to recover lost ground. The Italian luxury goods group is looking to strengthen its management team with 'key new figures'. In the first nine months of the year, Prada's sales at current exchange rates grew 1.2%, reaching €2.58 billion, while net income fell by 26.4% to €235.1 million.

 
The strategy, briefly mentioned by the label's CEO Patrizio Bertelli when the latest quarterly figures were published, has been confirmed by President Carlo Mazzi.
 
In an interview to Corriere Economia, the Corriere della Sera's business supplement, the latter has stated: "We are conscious of the need to structure the business with a configuration that is different from that of a family company, which Prada has mostly had until now, and to adapt it to the size reached by the group. "

“Our objective for 2016 is to review the organisation thoroughly," he added. In this context, the company does not rule out the creation of a general manager position, which up to now did not exist.
 
In the meantime, management has been strengthened. Communications Director Stefano Cantino has been promoted, and is now in charge also of marketing and commercial development. And the group now features an IT Director, Enzo Greco, and a Digital Director, Leonardo Girombelli.

By contrast, there is no question of changing anything in the style department, which stays in Miuccia Prada's hands, underlined Corriere Economia. The thinking is instead about "optimising the product mix." As Carlo Mazzi explained: "We need a more complete product range in all segments, in order to satisfy different types of customer."