Reinventing the family business

In 2024 the Milanese luxury fashion brand group Prada grew by 18% with revenues of €3.8 billion. Remarkable in an industry where many of the key players are struggling because of disappointing retail sales in China and Japan. French luxury group Kering for example recorded a 16% decline in revenue, mainly due to Gucci’s losses. Another luxury giant, LVMH, also saw their turnover decline, albeit less sharply. What is Prada’s secret?

According to this article in the Dutch Financial Times it’s Miuccia Prada who makes the difference. Born in 1948 as the granddaughter of Mario Prada, the founder of the group, she studied political sciences in the swinging sixties. In those years she also became a member of the communist party and learned to play mime – rebelling against the establishment is in her DNA. When she joined Prada in 1971, the company was still focusing on the production of luxury leather bags. Miuccia reinvented Prada as a fashion brand and introduced Miu Miu as a second brand. With its youthful energy, geek-chic items and strong appeal in Asia, Miu Miu is driving Prada’s growth today – with Miuccia still setting the direction. As Alexander Fury, fashion critic, puts it: “Miuccia celebrates the “anti”, the opposite, and makes us long for what the prevailing opinion deems undesirable”.

When discussing the Prada case, we realized that in many of the family businesses we partner with the NextGen drives the business transformation. Or, if they don’t get enough room to do this, they leave to start their own businesses. Starting a second brand like Miuccia Prada is a good way to experiment with business reinvention. 

What opportunities do you see in your industry? How do you want to reinvent your business?