PARIS — As it prepares to open its first store in London, Jacquemus has confirmed it is seeking a minority investor to fund its ongoing retail growth and expansion into beauty.
A spokeswoman for the French fashion house said it was looking for additional funds for its next phase of store openings in 2025 and 2026, and to help it explore the new category.
The house had previously declined to comment on a report by independent media Miss Tweed on Oct. 20 that Jacquemus had retained Rothschild & Co. to help it find a minority investor amid a broad luxury sector downturn that is expected to dent its revenues this year.
Founder Simon Porte Jacquemus told the French daily Le Figaro in an interview published on Wednesday that the time had come to find external funds for expansion in the U.S., Asia and Europe.
“I value my independence, I want to pass the business on to my children, but I need to break the glass ceiling by finding the right partner who will remain a minority shareholder,” he was quoted as saying.
“This is a very positive step for Jacquemus and its teams. Talks are well advanced, but I can’t say more at this stage. We’re also considering diversifying into beauty,” he added.
The Jacquemus store in SoHo.
Courtesy of Jacquemus
WWD first reported in 2021 that Jacquemus planned to partner with Puig on a beauty venture. Puig even acquired a 10 percent stake in the company, but the plan was aborted and Jacquemus subsequently bought back the stake.
Speaking to WWD ahead of his New York store opening earlier this month, which drew lines around the block, the designer revealed he had just completed a deal for his second U.S. store in Los Angeles, slated to open on Feb. 20.
“But this one is special,” he said of the SoHo store. “As an independent brand, opening a store [like this] is a big thing. It takes a lot of investment and it’s a new way to think about the business for a young company.”
Its next big move is the new store in the tony Mayfair district of London, set to open on Nov. 15.
Jacquemus has leased 33 New Bond Street from London art gallery Richard Green, which acquired the freehold of the property in 1995 and hired George Saumarez Smith of Adam Architecture to redo the neo-Classical facade, complete with a sculpted relief by Alexander Stoddart depicting the last voyage and death of Odysseus.
Retailers on New Bond Street.
New West End Company
Jacquemus has again worked with Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas’ OMA agency on the interior design of the store, which will span 3,445 square feet of selling space and will be the first to feature a dedicated floor for menswear, located on the first floor.
The ground floor will feature accessories, with womenswear on the second floor and a 538-square-foot VIP salon on the third. The boutique, featuring art works and furniture curated by the designer, will be open seven days a week.
“I feel extremely proud to be able, independently, to have opened boutiques in Paris, Saint-Tropez, Courchevel, Dubai, New York and now London. It’s a very special moment for the brand and its growth,” Jacquemus said in a statement shared with WWD.
Known for staging cinematic runway displays in spectacular locations including a lavender field, a salt mine and the Palace of Versailles, the brand posted revenues of 270 million euros in 2023, the spokeswoman said.
Jacquemus has been doing double duty as creative director and chief executive officer since the departure last December of Bastien Daguzan, but the search for a new CEO is said to be ongoing.
Daguzan said in 2022 that Jacquemus had a medium-target of 500 million euros in revenues by 2025, thanks to soaring sales of Chiquito handbags and Artichaut bucket hats, but that target now appears unrealistic. While the label has not shared revenue projections for 2024, it is expected to take a hit as aspirational consumers tighten their pursestrings.
