What: The FT reviews the recent trade-off made by Richemont in abandoning its majority stake in YNAP

Why it is important:  The financial newspaper raises the case of the actual possibility to sell luxury goods online at a profit. It argues that the validation of this business case has not been reached in 20 years so far.

The Financial Times reviews the deal recently made by Richemont and Farfetch in which Richemont cedes the majority stakes in Yoox Net a Porter to the luxury marketplace operator, writing off a total of €2,7bn spent over the course of two decades, in exchange of 12% of Farfetch’s shares.

The FT reminds that Farfetch’s shares are currently down 87% since the start of 2021, and Mytheresa’s are -66%. For the financial newspaper, this is the proof not that Richemont has been unable to manage at the same time the profitability of its own brands (Cartier and Mont Blanc among others) and the development of the online activity, but rather that there is not, so far, any validation of the fact that luxury can be sold online at a profit.

The Financial Times’ take on the Farfetch/Richemont deal