Prada S.p.A.

Good afternoon, everyone, and thank you for joining Prada Group's Full Year 2025 Results Conference Call. This is Andrea Bonini Group Chief Financial Officer, and I'm delighted to be with you again.

I'm joined by Mr. Andrea Guerra and Mr.

Lorenzo Bertelli. The agenda for today's presentation is on Page 4, and as always, it will be followed by Q&A.

As a reminder, during today's call, we may discuss forward-looking statements, which are subject to risks, uncertainties and factors beyond our control that could cause the actual outcome and returns to differ materially from such statements. Please refer to the disclaimers included on Slide 2 of our presentation.

With that, I will hand over to Mr. Guerra.

Hello, and welcome also by my side. Obviously, we are here today during a very peculiar moment, a period of turmoil in Middle East.

We do not know what will happen, but we hope it will be short. And let me be -- let me say something.

Let me be very close to all our associates and all our people on the ground today in Middle East to all our stakeholders in the region in this specific moment of pray, reflection and community, we're very close to all our people in the region. Having said so, and I think this is paramount.

I would love to start off saying that 2025 for our industry has been a very challenging year. I can state, and we can state that during the last 3, 4 years, the industry lost something like 1 consumer out of 5.

In this long period, the Prada Group has been very solid and not only for the past years, but also in 2025. Retail sales in 2025 have grown again throughout the year, mostly or mostly entirely again, like-for-like, marking another plus 8% at the end of the year.

We have been able against strong comps of 2024 to keep Prada on a breakeven like-for-like and most importantly, a sequential improvement through second half compared to first half. Miu Miu finished Q4 at a plus 20% on a plus more than 80% of a year ago.

And it's obvious looking to the trend in the last 4 quarters that we have begun our growth normalization journey that will continue during 2026. 2025 has been for our both brands, a very interesting journey.

Why interesting? Because we were able to showcase a lot of novelties, a lot of new ways of doing things, utilizing new tools, really upgrading our capability on digital technology and artificial intelligent tools to do what, to become closer, to upgrade significantly product intrinsic value, to be sure to allow all our consumers to understand and therefore, to tell them the stories around products that were coming out of the market, upgrading significantly our hospitality inside the stores and outside the stores and in the redefinition of new stores, flows.

On the other side, always in this new normal we have been very clear and very focused on enterprise products and ranges. During this year, we did not only perform solidly, but we continued investing on our people on their know-how on their motivation.

We have continued investing on our strategic digital plans and AI tools. We continued investing over proportionally on desirability and awareness of our brands.

And we have continued to invest over proportionally versus sales on our stores to upgrade aesthetics and even more important to increase our hospitality standards. And even if the level of investments on all these cost lines have been overproportionate, we were able to keep a steady profitability, which means that what we committed upon which was being more productive and be more efficient, we have been able to do it in all other profit and loss lines.

And do not forget, and Andrea will be obviously much more detailed of me on this, the amount of FX headwinds, we have been leaving and we will continue to experience in 2026. Last but not least, we began during December, our journey, closing the acquisition of the Versace brand.

What does all this mean? We have been talking about a new normal.

We have been talking about digital tools really coming to a standard use. We have been discussing about hospitality.

It's obvious that we are entering a new journey now together with Versace. And this means that on one side, we have new achievements to be accomplished during 2026, '27 and '28.

And on the other side, also the commitment to constantly grow over market range. During this next period, we feel that the Prada performance will be solid and to really reaping all benefits of desirability first and all actions and investments in place.

We are consolidating Miu Miu's success, enhancing awareness and driving growth through 2026 with very different weights on the 2 halves. The first half is more challenging because we were yet in a plus 40%, 45% range a year ago.

Therefore, we expect a first half to be in the single-digit growth, but yet being able to show a much solid trajectory for the full year. We are beginning the journey with Versace, a year of consolidation, a year of synergies and a fantastic start to shape the creative vision.

The journey will go through a first phase of channel repositioning, supporting high-quality full prices and distribution. And we will see what this means for the numbers of Versace and for the overall performance of the group.

I will now turn the word to Lorenzo and Andrea to give you a full view of Prada and Miu Miu brands, numbers, performance and also an initial view of Versace first steps in 2026.

Good afternoon. Thank you, Andrea.

First of all, I would like to highlight how Prada continues to strengthen its position as a cultural and creative leader, not only by setting trends but also by consistently elevating the brand experience across all touch points. All the core of this performance is authentic creativity.

Throughout the year, our fashion shows reaffirmed Prada's ability to anticipate and shape contemporary culture, translating a deep understanding of the present into a clear, distinctive aesthetic language. This creative strength was equally evident in our communication.

We delivered highly impactful campaigns that combined cultural relevance with strong brand desirability. At the same time, we continue to build a multifaceted brand universe throughout unique experiences and long-term partnerships.

A key milestone was the opening of Mi Shang Prada Rong Zhai, our first stand-alone restaurant in Asia, considered by renowned director Wong Kar-wai. This project perfectly represents our approach to hospitality as a cultural expression where fashion, cinema and lifestyle intersect in a meaningful way.

Enhanced retail concept contributed to strengthening the client engagement. New hospitality venues in Shanghai and Singapore, the landmark retail opening in New York and the refined setting of Prada Alexandra House in Hong Kong are some of the key milestones in the evolution of the store footprint over the year.

In parallel, our long-standing partnership between Prada Linea Rossa and Red Bull allowed us to engage new audiences through high-performance sportswear projects, reinforcing the brand's connection to innovation, performance and contemporary lifestyle. Finally, Prada continued to play an active role in shaping the contemporary cultural debate with signature initiatives in London, Osaka, Abu Dhabi and Milan.

These events were complemented by special projects and activations such as Days of Summer and The Sound of Prada, which further expanded the brand reach. All of this reflects our ongoing commitment to creativity as a strategic driver of value.

This slide illustrates how Miu Miu continues to stand out as one of the most desirable and relevant brands in the luxury landscape, driven by a language that is both distinctive and highly distinctive. At the heart of Miu Miu's performance, is a vibrant disruptive creativity, which consistently fuels the brand desirability.

Throughout the year, Miu Miu maintained an exceptionally high level of buzz supported by fashion shows that were widely acclaimed and strongly resonated with both the fashion community and broader cultural audiences. This creative energy was amplified by our campaign, which features the diverse and influential cast of talent reinforcing Miu Miu connection with the new generations of consumers.

Special projects played a key role in engaging and expanding Miu Miu's ever-growing community such as our collaboration with New Balance and the American Tennis Champion, Coco Gauff as well as the exploration of new creative territories through Catherine Martin's Upcycled collection accompanied by her directorial debut short film, Grande Envie. In addition, the launch of Miu Miu's first fragrance with L'Oreal Miutine marked an important step in expanding the brand's universe.

Experiential activations such as the Atheneum and Gymnasium pop-ups further enriched Miu Miu's signature codes, transforming retail into spaces of discovery and cultural exchange. In parallel, Miu Miu continued to reinforce its distinctive cultural positioning throughout event initiatives that deepens its long-standing dialogue with arts.

Finally, all the initiatives were accompanied by a mix of openings and renovations that elevated the store network for enhanced customer journey. One, London and Tokyo were among the most significant projects embedded over the period.

Overall, Miu Miu's strength lies in its ability to combine strong desirability with authentic cultural relevance, a balance that continues to fuel growth and engagement. Let's move now to ESG.

Over the past year, we continued to execute our sustainability strategy across our 3 pillars: planet, people and culture. On the environmental front, we made tangible progress across both our operations and supply chain.

Investment in green energy and low impact solutions enabled us to exceed our approved science-based target for Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions, a result that confirms the strength and discipline of our decarbonization pathway. At the same time, we advanced our raw materials conversion plan, strengthened environmental data collection across the supply chain, expanded our water stewardship initiatives and further improved responsible chemical management.

Equally important is our commitment to people. During the year, we reinforced our efforts to foster a fair and inclusive workplace.

We achieved the gender equality certification in Italy, rolled out our worldwide people culture forums and delivered D&I awareness training programs in line with our global D&I road map. This year also marked the 25th anniversary of the Prada Group Academy, a milestone that reflects our long-standing dedication to preserving artisanal excellence and supporting generational transitions.

Culture remains a defining element of our identity. Through our partnership with UNESCO and SEA BEYOND projects, we further strengthened our commitment to ocean education, opening the first Ocean Literacy Center in Venice, launching a dedicated Multi-Partner Trust Fund and Ocean Educational Exhibition in Shanghai.

We also renewed important partnerships supporting Urban biodiversity and cancer research. Overall, the year reflects consistent progress and a clear commitment to creating a sustainable long-term value.

I will now leave the floor to Andrea for the financial review. Thank you.

Thank you, Lorenzo. Before we dive into the numbers, let me remind you that we completed the acquisition of Versace on December 2, and therefore, we consolidated one month of contribution from the brand into our financials.

In the presentation, we will also provide growth rates excluding this impact, to which we refer as organic growth. With this in mind, let's now move to the key financials.

The group reported net revenues of EUR 5.7 billion, up 9% versus fiscal year '24 at constant FX. On an organic basis, revenues grew 8% year-on-year.

This performance delivered against high comps throughout fiscal year '24, marks the fifth consecutive year of growth at group level. Exchange rates had a negative impact of 380 basis points on revenues and the increase at current exchange rates is therefore plus 5%.

Retail sales for the period totaled EUR 5.1 billion, up 8% organic versus fiscal year '24 and up 28% versus fiscal year '23 at constant FX. EBIT adjusted reached EUR 1.32 billion in fiscal year '25 with margin of 23.2%, including the dilutive impact of Versace.

Pre-Versace consolidation, EBIT-adjusted margin was steady versus 2024, in the context of significant investments across functions and FX headwinds. On a constant currency basis, EBIT adjusted margin improved year-on-year.

Finally, thanks to the significant cash generation we maintained a healthy balance sheet, closing the year with a net debt position of EUR 466 million after EUR 620 million of CapEx cash out, including real estate, EUR 1.2 billion for Versace acquisition and EUR 420 million of dividends. Moving on to the next slide.

Retail continues to be the key driver of the top line performance, up 9% versus fiscal year '24 at constant FX, 8% on an organic basis, driven by like-for-like full price sales and with a positive contribution from both average price and full price volumes. The fourth quarter delivered a solid performance, up 6%, notwithstanding the challenging comparison base.

As a reminder, in 2024, retail channel growth was remarkably consistent at plus 18% in all quarters. Contribution from space remains limited in the low single-digit region.

Wholesale was up 4% year-on-year, 3% on an organic basis, reflecting the usual selective approach with independents. Q4 at minus 1% organic was impacted by our cautious stance on shipments to Saks Global, and we are pleased that business with this important strategic partner has now resumed.

Royalties were up plus 19% year-on-year, plus 14% organic, supported by both eyewear and fragrances. Turning to next slide, retail sales by brand.

We are pleased with the performance of our brands as they continue to enjoy high desirability and relevance in a challenging context. Prada showed good resilience, closing the year at minus 1%, with Q4 delivering further sequential improvement and turning positive despite the more difficult comps supported, in particular, by Mainland China, Korea, Japan and Americas.

Miu Miu delivered sustained growth throughout the period against exceptionally high comps. Retail sales grew by 35% to reach EUR 1.6 billion.

Growth was well spread across all product categories and regions. Q4 sales were up by 20% against plus 84% in 2024, with growth remaining well balanced.

As a result, the brand contribution to group retail sales increased to 31% against 25% in fiscal year '24. As for Church's, the strategic efforts of the past years continue to keep the brand on a positive trajectory, driven by like-for-like sales.

Moving to the next slide, retail sales by geography. We are pleased to report that the group achieved growth across all regions.

Asia Pacific showed a good progression over the year at plus 11%, plus 10% organic with Q4 broadly in line with Q3, notwithstanding the higher comps. Positive performance in Europe, up 5% over the year, plus 4% organic.

We saw softer trends in the second part of the year with strong multiyear comps and lower tourism weighing on the region. Consistent double-digit growth in the Americas, with sales up 18% plus 15% organic, driven by local demand.

Japan delivered growth notwithstanding the exceptionally high touristic flows of the last year, closing the year at plus 3%. Q4 showed some improvement versus Q3, driven by both solid local demand and increased traveler flows, notwithstanding the geopolitical tensions in the region.

And lastly, the Middle East also delivered a solid performance at plus 15%, we're moderating trends in the second part of the year on high comps. Turning to the next slide.

Gross margin reached 8.3% in fiscal year '25, up by 50 basis points, thanks to operating leverage and channel mix, while the dilutive impact from Versace consolidation for only one month was negligible. Excluding the consolidation of such and strong FX headwinds, EBIT adjusted margin improved, driven by slightly higher gross margin.

G&A savings coming from efficiencies and operating leverage which more than offset higher marketing and selling costs. Including the dilutive impact of Versace consolidation, as shown in this page, EBIT adjusted reached EUR 1.32 billion, corresponding to an EBITA adjusted margin of 23.2%.

And finally, net income reached EUR 852 million, an increase of 2% versus fiscal year '24. Moving to the next slide.

CapEx for fiscal year '25 was EUR 617 million, EUR 535 million excluding real estate as we continue to invest across retail, industrial capabilities and technology. On the retail side, as you've heard from Andrea, investments were concentrated on the enhancement of the store presence with renovation projects and control new openings and enlargements at both Prada and Miu Miu in line with the objective of furthering the relationship with clients.

Aside from retail, we continue to strengthen our industrial capabilities, investing into our infrastructure and to progress on the digital evolution journey as we started to reap the benefits from our multiyear system upgrade plan. We expect CapEx as a percentage of sales to start reducing from the current fiscal year.

Moving to the next slide. We are very pleased with the evolution of net working capital and the control of the inventory, showing further improvement year-on-year on an organic basis, with incidents on net sales declining from 15% to 14%.

And lastly, we retain a healthy balance sheet post acquisition with net debt of EUR 466 million. The Board of Directors has proposed a dividend per share of EUR 0.166, which compares to EUR 0.164 last year, which would result in a total dividend of EUR 425 million and a stable payout ratio of 50%.

I'll now pass it back to Lorenzo for an update on Versace.

Thank you, Andrea. As we have said in the past, we are very excited about this new chapter.

With Versace, we welcome a brand that has made the history of fashion and glamor as we know it today. It's estate is bold unique, represent modern elegance and constitutes highly complementary addition to Prada Group's existing portfolio.

We started this journey being able to count on a lot of strengths. First of all, remarkable and long-standing awareness; second, resonance across a diversified client base, which has limited, if not overlap with our customer base.

Third, strong legitimacy in haute-couture and across product categories, balanced across men and women. Lastly, strong cultural relevance, rich archive and solid brand equity.

Because of this, we believe the brand offers multiple untapped levers of growth. We are aware that this won't be an overnight task, but a passionate journey towards the brand's full potential, and that's why the timing of our initiatives will be of the essence.

In terms of priorities, the following slide highlights the key actions we are going to implement in the next months. Creativity will be the foundation of our work, and we have taken a first important step into this direction with the appointment of Pieter Mulier as Chief Creative Officer.

Pieter will join in July, and we are very excited to have him on board. In the meantime, we will continue to assess the core collection and product lines to identify areas of improvement in terms of quality and structure.

The second building block of our plan will be a gradual channel repositioning. We will progressively shift the focus towards quality, full-price sales and distribution.

At the same time, instilling a retail excellence mindset will be essential for improving in-store execution. In parallel, we will progress with the integration process across functions, and we expect to complete the separation from Capri Holdings in H2.

Looking at 2027 and beyond, we will essentially bring all of these areas to the next level as we lay down the basis for the building long-term desirability. At the beginning of the year, we'll present Pieter's first collection showcasing the new creative vision rooted in the brand's original spirit and DNA.

The collection will also continue to evolve as we progressively reposition the brand and relaunch special project like Atelier Versace. We also continue with the network optimization as we progressively rationalize the off-price channel and the markdown practices while focusing on driving in-store productivity with self-help initiatives in terms of retail execution.

All these actions will be supported by a further integration of activities and processes across the organization to unlock synergies opportunities. Now back to Andrea for some financial considerations.

Thank you, Lorenzo. In terms of financials, as already explained, we consolidated only one month of the business in 2025.

On a full year basis, the brand generated revenues of approximately EUR 680 million. Looking ahead, 2026 will be a year of transition for the brand as we navigate the change in creative leadership.

We also want to commence the path towards a healthier, more sustainable and more profitable business conscious that we have to move back to go forward. Therefore, we will further clean up the collections discontinuing Versace Jeans Couture and leaving no sub-brands in existence in ready-to-wear and other core categories.

At the same time, we will start to implement a greater discipline in terms of discounting while remaining mindful of the commercial needs. On the wholesale front, we expect progressive stabilization, and we will start implementing some actions to rebalance the commercial relationships on healthier terms.

All in all, we expect this to translate into a mid-single-digit top line contraction at constant FX, which is likely to become high single digit at current FX. Turning to profitability.

First of all, let me point out that the company's initial margin is at a good level in relative terms to our industry. However, we believe that quality must be improved and also that initial margin is diluted by significant discounting.

Therefore, we'll progressively invest in quality. On the other side, we will start implementing greater discipline on discounting.

All considered, in fiscal year '26, we expect gross margin to be relatively stable with a caveat on duties as the situations remain fluid. In terms of OpEx, we have acted decisively, and we will see the benefit of initial synergies and savings.

This will be partially reinvested in strategic areas like visual merchandising and marketing, while we maintain cost discipline on all other nonstrategic items. All in all, we expect to be able to mitigate the negative impact coming from the top line reduction, and the EBIT loss will not be too dissimilar from the one incurred in fiscal year '25.

The target is to limit that to a 2-digit figure. Now moving to the next slide.

Let's translate that into a group view. On top line, for 2026, our ambition is to continue to generate solid, sustainable organic growth at Prada, Miu Miu and group level.

Prada turned positive in Q4, and our expectations are for a solid year. Miu Miu is now lapping the fourth consecutive year of very significant growth, and we have continued to observe normalization.

As Andrea mentioned at the beginning of the call, H1 is particularly challenging with Q1 at plus 60%, and Q2 at plus 40%. Nonetheless, we aim for another year of growth.

We already discussed Versace in the previous slide, so it doesn't require any further comments. Last point on top line.

We expect to continue facing meaningful FX pressure in fiscal year '26, similar to 2025. Turning to profitability.

Let me first discuss expectations excluding Versace. We remain committed to continue to deliver some degree of organic margin progression on a yearly basis.

Marketing spend will slightly increase as a percentage of sales, and we expect to continue to achieve efficiencies in labor, rent and G&A. So leaving aside the impact of Versace, as long as the group top line growth in reported terms remains in mid-single-digit territory, we can deliver a steady EBIT margin without acting more drastically on investments or costs.

Versace's consolidation will result in EBIT margin dilution in fiscal year '26, and our target is to resume progressive improvement from 2027. With that, I'll hand over to Andrea Guerra for closing remarks.

We're very happy to have shared with you our 2025 performance and to share with you our initial thoughts on future journey. Years ago, we committed to an upgrade an evolution of our ability to have a stronger and more proactive relationship with all our clients and potential clients, to be more efficient and productive in our retail network and overall in our company, to empower and upgrade our people, wherever they are in the group, aligning them constantly to their brand missions.

We achieved solid constant growth. We significantly improved in all our consumer-faced activities.

We have seen profitability increase year-by-year, working capital sequentially improving and therefore, cash flow. So obviously, we are pleased for all these achievements and all these activities.

Now we're entering a new journey, which is made by all the things that we have already talked about in constant evolution plus Versace. We are committed.

We're working hard. We will be patient to have the right pace.

Obviously, in this new normal world, agility and efficiency remain nonnegotiable. I will try to anticipate some of your questions now.

How are these first months? Trajectory for Prada is improving.

As Andrea said, we are expecting a solid year for Prada. And we had a solid Chinese New Year full period, like-for-like on last year's and in the whole Asian region, except Japan, where Chinese tourists were much less present.

But on the other side, fortunately, in Japan, we are winning with our beloved Japanese local clients. Europe started January slow and improved with Milan Olympic Games and Fashion Weeks.

Obviously, Europe for Prada and Miu Miu are challenged by very high double-digit comps for the past years, not year. Korea is still strong.

North America is still very strong. And obviously, I will repeat that we are here to challenge ourselves to keep a growth rate higher than market average with trajectories which are different from our different brands as stated during our presentation.

With this, I would like to thank all of you for listening and we are now open to your questions and comments.

So the first one is going to be on top line to Andrea Guerra. So you mentioned that you expect -- or sorry, maybe it was Andrea Bonini mentioning that you expect a solid growth for Prada in 2026.

Could you please kind of define solid? Should we understand that you expect to grow kind of low single digit at constant FX for Prada after a minus 1 in '25 or would that be even higher than that?

And if so, what kind of is going to drive the reacceleration from '25 to '26 and then regarding Miu Miu, do you think a double-digit growth at constant FX is something which is achievable or given the difficult comp that might be difficult to achieve? So that would be question number one.

Hello. Yes, we -- you're asking for a guidance, and we are not giving guidance, especially in this world today where, I mean, in the last -- only last 6 months, we have been living any positive and negative and side effects.

So I hope that we use the proper words. We have been very careful on adjective we were using, and I will not comment further.

The only comment I would do is that if everything goes well, we will be double digit on Miu Miu. But with this world, things could be different.

Got it. But maybe Andrea, if I can just follow up.

Not asking for a guidance, but again, you talked about your expectation for a solid growth for Prada brand in '26. Again, without quantifying you were down 1% in '25.

So if you could please elaborate on why you think you're going to reaccelerate in '26 versus '25?

Sure. We had a peak down in central months of the year and the central months of 2025 or else we would have been pretty positive in 2025 as well.

I think that we can cover those months with a positive rate. We have been positive since August.

August, September, October, November, December were positive. In December, it's a question sometimes of calendar where a year, you've got a couple of days gift a year, you got a couple of days back.

And this was a case where we gave it back or else in a kind of organic manner, we were a little bit more positive. Having said so, I think we have a rhythm of product innovation, of product evolution of activities, of events.

We -- I think we have reached a level of maturity on a number of retail activities and hospitality activities. And we're also beating our own sometimes mind effects on very high transactions.

So these are all the reasons why I feel solid as we said.

Got it. And my second and last question, and maybe for Lorenzo on Versace.

So you've been appointed Executive Chairman. Congratulations.

You also mentioned that you've hired Pieter Mulier, which is -- who is obviously very well regarded in the industry. Is the team in place now?

And did you hire mostly from the Prada Group, you had transfer? Or did you hire external people.

And again, how fast it seems that you want to not rock the boat, so to speak, too quickly with the rationalization of the store estate and the outlets. But how do you -- how fast are you ready to move on kind of shrinking to grow the business longer term, yes?

Thank you for the question. No, I would say it will be balanced.

Let me start from the end of your question, then I go back to the other. So the priority for sure is at the full price in the retail network and then also the rationalization of the outlet also thinking that with the new collection coming out from Pieter from next year, you will have previous collection that, of course, they will need to accelerate to the outlet.

So outlet will come later for sure, for the full price. Then regarding to the question organization, I think it's quite a hybrid because we have some of the functions that have been absorbed in the group function typical back office function like IT and others.

And so it's more like efficiency, poor efficiency, other function. We simply had streamlined a bit the organization, so not like key significant outside role except that you heard on journal like the shift of the supply chain that was coming from Valentina was a former Prada historic employee.

So external but let's say, part of the family in the past. And at the moment, more or less, we are happy like this also with Emmanuel and a CEO.

So -- then we will take for sure, the next 6, 8 months to even better understand the organization and we will see. But at the moment, we are for sure happy.

Of course, with Pieter, we will have some changes in the design offices, but I would say, normal stuff and that's it.

I have two, one on revenue and one on the Middle East. The first one on Versace revenue contraction that you anticipate for this year from EUR 680 million last year.

We understand it's largely self-inflicted due to the channel repositioning. Can you give us an idea of the magnitude of the store closures you are planning?

Are there also some wholesale rationalization or is it just retail closures through '26 and '27? And you said earlier, the expected operating loss won't be much higher than '25.

Can you indicate what was the Versace EBIT loss in calendar '25, it seems to be around EUR 10 million, EUR 20 million, if my math is correct, if we assume, as you said that the Prada Group -- the old Prada Group EBIT margin was flat at 23.6% ex Versace. That's my first question.

Thomas, [Foreign Language]. So on revenue, I said it that the expectation is for mid-single-digit constant FX, which is likely to become high single digit or we will be because, I mean, with the FX, you never know on a reported basis.

That's on the top line of Versace. And on the second question, likewise, I mean, not much to add to what I already said.

The -- I said that the -- our target is to limit the operating loss to a 2-digit figure. And if the number you were referring to, i.e', the -- I think you mentioned EUR 10-ish million for fiscal year '25, I assume that number is for -- you were referring to a number that is the one that we consolidated for the fact of December into our numbers, and it's not of mile, let's say that it's a single-digit number, but it's around there.

Is that clear?

Yes, that's very clear. And my second question on the Middle East, which you disclosed separately in your segment reporting 5% of your sales.

Can you remind us how many Prada and Miu Miu stores you operate in the region? And how many of them are currently closed, given the complex situation?

And what is your overall exposure to the Middle Eastern clientele, if you take into account the sales to locals in the Middle East, but also sales to Middle Eastern tourists traditionally in Europe and other markets?

Regarding Middle East, in terms of opening and closing stores, it's a daily evolution and a daily activity. The most difficult situations are in Qatar, in Bahrain and in Kuwait.

Having said that Middle East is very different places, very different regions because, I mean, basically, Saudi nothing happened and it's, I would say, 100% local clientele. The Emirates, I would say, is 1/3 locals, 1/3 expat, 1/3 tourists.

And I mean, we will see what's going on.

Yes. I have two.

So firstly, regarding the progressive improvement in 2027 regarding Versace, I just want to follow up a bit on that. So does it mean that we expect Versace will go back to a growth territory?

And also for the margin, can we expect turnaround or...

Excuse me, your line is very, very disturbed. We can't -- there's a huge noise.

Can you hear me now?

Hopefully, let's see.

Can you hear me now? Okay.

So first question is about Versace improvements in 2027...

Excuse me. No, your line is a mess.

Try later, please. Thank you.

The first one is on the wholesale channel. What are your expectations for this year?

And my second question is on the retail network. Can you give us an idea on the store openings you expect this year and the perimeter effect you expect due to these openings?

Yes. On wholesale, more or less, we're having the same kind of percentage growth in these last years, and more or less, we will keep on with the same percentages.

As we said, we had the necessity to keep back some inventory not to be shipped to Saks at the end of 2025. And we resumed and Andrea was saying our shipments beginning of '26.

This is also why in Q4, we were a little bit less in our normal standard average. So I would say that we will keep on having more or less the same average growth that we had in these years.

In terms of retail network, for Prada, I would say it will be between some pluses and negatives, some opening and some closures. We will remain with the same kind of square meters, but I think we will close more stores than what we will open during 2026.

With Miu Miu, we will add another 5 to 10 stores during 2026. And then as we said 2 years ago, and we will also close some with Miu Miu.

But at the end of 2026, the big progression in terms of space expansion for Miu Miu is basically over. That is we will be with something around 170, 175 stores, and we will remain there for a while.

I have three, if I may. Starting with the first one, just a clarification on the Prada brand cluster.

I think in the previous calls, you always provide some color. So if you can do the same for Q4 in terms of Americans, Europeans, Chinese cluster trends for Prada brand retail, please?

Chris, so clusters for the Prada brand, the Chinese -- starting from Chinese cluster, there was a significant quarter-on-quarter improvement which is driven by positive domestic consumption and better travel spending. Europeans was flattish for the year, slightly softer in Q4 versus Q3 with local demand remaining more resilient than travel spending.

The North Americans was positive mid-single digit for the year and further improved in Q4 to positive, I'd say, high single-digit, mostly domestic. And Japanese was positive low single digit in Q4 and full year with no major differences versus Q3, mainly solid local demand.

Okay. Perfect.

And then secondly on Miu Miu, if I caught it correctly, you were saying that given the very tough comps, I guess, on a multiyear basis, you're expecting single-digit growth in H1 before an acceleration into H2. I'm just trying to square the math here because in theory, we do start to see more meaningful space contribution from 2026.

I think you were mentioning 10 to 15 stores. So going from 20% in Q4 to single digit, and if you can also quantify a bit if it's going to be like a low, mid-, high single digit.

Are you assuming very cautious volume assumptions to get to that kind of guidance target, please?

Yes, we are. Exactly what you're saying.

So you're assuming volumes decline in H1 for Miu Miu?

No, no, no. We are being cautious.

Okay. So you don't rule out the potential scope for positive surprises.

That's what you're saying?

I think that time has arrived, and we are happy with the journey we have done and with the journey we have in front of us. But we are now in an everyday competition and gaining our opportunities and wins and battles.

I think it's a journey that it's especially the first 1, 2, 3, 4 months pretty complicated because we were in a plus 60% range last year. And then it's a little bit easier.

Obviously, on the other side, when you open a store, you also need to allow the business to go where it has to go. So we're extremely happy of the new stores we opened.

I think that we didn't really make any real mistake. And let's go.

I mean this is -- I think this is a very important year for Miu Miu and we are into it and on to it every single day of our life.

Okay. Perfect.

That's very helpful. And last but not least, on Versace.

I think in the press release, you mentioned that 2026 obviously would be dilutive to the group, and you expect '27 onwards to start to see some gradual improvement. If I remember correctly in the past, when you were executing the Prada turnaround, I think the EBIT margin pressure kind of lasted for a longer period of time because of the acceleration in investments.

But is it fair? Or can you kind of outline the underlying assumptions you have here for Versace to already start to see margin improvement in 2027, unless I'm misunderstanding anything here?

Well, first, I mean, I would start -- it's Andrea Bonini. I would start saying that the two situations are very different.

So comparing the Prada turnaround to Versace, and so would not really take that as a comparable. As we look forward, there's an element, of course, of reinvestment into the business, into the brand and accelerating on certain areas of spending that will move margins in a certain direction.

At the same time, I mean, we will continue to look for synergies and efficiencies that should help in the opposite direction. And most importantly, as we always say, a lot depend from the top line.

And on the top line, we will see from '27 on really the results of the actions that we will be taking. On retail, at the same time on wholesale, you know that we already talked about the fact that we already said, we anticipate some sort of stabilization already starting from '26.

So there's elements going in the two directions that make us believe that things are going according to plan. Yes, we can indeed start seeing an improvement from '27.

This is Daria from Bank of America. I actually just have one.

On Versace, when will Pieter Mulier present his first collection for the brand? And what will be the time line of collections change given currently Dario Vitale collections, I think, have started to arrive online and in stores so that we just understand the cadence of the collection rollout.

As we said, the first show of Pieter will be beginning of next year. And on the collection first has to arrive and has to work on it, so I cannot answer to that question.

Honestly, for sure, it's going to be different from the one of Dario.

Yes. I just had two quick ones.

The first one is, Andrea, can you be perhaps a little bit more specific on what keeping losses at Versace to double digit in '26 looks like? Are you basically gaining for EUR 80 million, EUR 90 million of losses basically?

That would be helpful. And secondly, perhaps more fundamentally, you seem to have gone a huge supplier rationalization process in recent weeks.

Can we perhaps understand what comes out of that process? What you'll gain out of that dynamic, please?

If I -- thank you. And Andrea, you always have to be more specific, but I suppose it's for me, it's Andrea Bonini.

On the Versace, did I understand correctly the question that what's keeping it at that level?

No, it's more, if you can be a little bit more specific on what double digit -- keeping at double-digit level means. I mean, I appreciate you gave us that, the 1 month was a minus 8%, minus 9% contribution.

But are we basically looking for '26 keeping that loss at EUR 80 million, EUR 90 million. Is that the quantum of magnitude?

Yes, no, but not going to be. I think we said a lot, and I'm not going to be more specific than that for today.

And second question, Andrea.

So regarding our -- what you said about supplier rationalization, I think this is a journey that really began with COVID. And this has gone in parallel on one side in creating more internal manufacture infrastructure.

We created three factories from that moment to today, and we are working on two other, one is renovation and one is a new one. And on the other side, I think that in our journey, we have cut the weaker.

We have given more work to more organized players. And I think this is the journey that has been the characteristic of our history since we were born.

So I wouldn't consider this as a special year or a special moment. No, it's the journey we're doing.

And hope the sound looks better now. So first question from me is regarding the performance during Chinese New Year, we have seen a very solid one.

So just wondering if you see any differences between high net worth consumer as well as aspirational consumer? Do you see which category of consumer group can drive the growth more?

Or actually they are both performing very well. And we can see you have been launching quite a good line of product expansion into home categories, et cetera, with entry level price.

So we wonder if we actually are expanding more categories that can maintain the dialogue with aspirational customers in the coming year.

So first of all, I take the opportunity to say that we have been really happy and grateful to all our Chinese and Asian teams during this last 6 weeks. They worked day and night.

And I think that we have been successful on all lines. This is what I'm happy about.

I mean, we have been very successful on new customers, which is something that we were not seeing for quite a while in China. So that was a good one.

And we improved on all our segments from VIC to aspirational customers. And what was good about this Chinese New Year is that we had a positive outlook from travelers and from locals before Chinese New Year.

So I don't want to say that China is back. I don't want to say that, but the steps and the progression have gone in the proper direction.

So my second question is still about Versace. So it is actually about the progressive investment -- improvement in the year of 2027.

So just want to understand more about this progressive improvement. Does it mean that Versace brand will go back to the positive growth trajectory in terms of sales?

Or will we actually see the profitability improving to breakeven or actually profit making? So how can we expect a mid-term outlook, especially regarding the improvement in 2027?

I think at the moment, honestly, to have a clear outlook on the next year, Versace, especially in China's market is too early. And as we said, we are looking to reduce losses next year and to improve marginality and for sure, start the journey of steady pace to grow with Versace.

But at the moment, it's too early to have more precise outlook than that.

Okay. So congratulations on the new journey with Versace.

I think we have one last question and then -- so let's move with that.

Most are about Versace. I will start asking you if you can touch base on what are your plans in terms of supply chain for the brand?

What are you going to change in this respect and the possible integration with your supplier base? And the second question still on Versace.

If you can elaborate on what are your plans in terms of category mix, if you envisage any change in the architecture of collections already with Pieter next year? And the third one, on the profitability of Versace, whether your stance on margins for full year '26 also takes into account of some write-down of inventories which would clearly not be probably repeated to the same extent in full year '27.

Then I have another one on Miu Miu. I will go ahead after your answers.

So it's obvious that we will follow with Versace the same attitude we follow with our two brands. So a vertical integration -- vertical organization for what regards all face activity -- clients face activities.

So total independence and verticalization and responsibility from that point of view. And we will use our Prada Group platform for all potential and possible manufacturing.

Obviously, we have already started planning it and probably even first step of execution it will take time because, I mean, nonetheless, we also have some IT things to be done as well. So it will take some time.

But for sure, all the supply chain will be integrated inside the Prada Group facilities. In terms of categories, I think that it's too early.

I mean, it's obvious that Versace is incredibly strong and has a huge heritage on ready-to-wear. So -- I mean, to improve on the other categories, from a theoretical point of view, it's easy because we are really starting from small numbers, and we will see how and when -- how the different collections will evolve.

In terms of margins, Andrea, I don't know if you want to answer.

No, but I wouldn't add anything in the sense that, look, when we wanted to give an order of magnitude and the order of magnitude is that also take into consideration, as we always do and when we budget and so on, I mean, what we need to do on the inventory. At the same time, there may be other one-offs that come up or not.

But the point was more to give you, as I said, I mean, an order of magnitude of what we're talking about. I believe you had, Paola, an additional question, correct?

Yes. Another question is about Miu Miu.

My feeling is that you have turned a little bit more prudent on the expansion of the network. My understanding before was that the pace of new opening could have continued for maybe a few years more.

If my feeling is right, I'm just wondering what is probably driving this stance from your side? Is a matter of overall market conditions?

Is a matter of competitive environment in...

No, no. I will -- I think you got it wrong at the beginning.

No, no. We gave you the opportunity that we had and we still have and we wanted to have an increase last year of a 10 to 15 stores and closing some and the same thing we're going to do this year and closing some and enlarging others.

So nothing has changed. I think we are finished now.

So thank you, everyone, for attending. And hopefully, next time, we will discuss in a more peaceful world.