OTB news and archive

OTB appoints new executive to board

OTB, the Italian fashion group behind brands Diesel, Jill Sander and Viktor & Rolf, has named Cristina Bombassei as an executive director. Bombassei is currently chief corporate social responsibility officer of Brembo, an Italian manufacturer of automotive brake systems. She has also been chair of the National Confindustria Corporate Social...

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Why Italy is not likely to see the formation of a new luxury group

Italy is not likely to see the formation of a new luxury group, which is perhaps not in the DNA of the country’s majority family-owned businesses. “I don’t think there will ever be a large luxury group in Italy. I don’t see any aggregations, said Moncler CEO Remo Ruffini, during a fashion roundtable ‘Fashion business and consumption’, organised...

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OTB appoints two new executives to board

Fashion group OTB, whose portfolio includes Diesel, Jill Sander and Viktor & Rolf, has appointed Arabella Ferrari and Carlo Purassanta to its board of directors. Ferrari has 25 years of experience in cosmetics and currently works as senior vice president of the global marketing and make-up business unit of Intercos, where she is also a member of...

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Jil Sander acquired by OTB

Jil Sander, the erstwhile German luxury brand, has been acquired by Italian fashion group OTB. The parent company of Diesel and Margiela bought the house from Japanese fashion group Onward Holding for an undisclosed sum. Jil Sander, which recently has re-found its fashion footing under husband and wife creative team Luke and Lucie Meier, was...

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Diesel parent OTB confirms interest to acquire Jil Sander

Jil Sander could soon return to Italian ownership as Only the Brave (OTB), the parent company of Diesel, confirmed interested in acquiring the house. According to WWD, the due diligence process is already in progress, confirming the speculations from December that the Group’s founder Renzo Rosso was interested in the minimalist fashion house. “...

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OTB appoints Gianfranco Gianangeli as CEO of Maison Margiela

Fashion group OTB has announced the appointment of Gianfranco Gianangeli as the new CEO of Parisian fashion house Maison Margiela. Gianangeli, who will join the brand in September and report to group CEO Ubaldo Minelli, has held various managerial positions across luxury fashion, such as global retail director at Givenchy, associate...

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OTB launches “hyper real” digital showroom

The OTB group, which includes Diesel, Margiela, Marni and Viktor and Rolf, has launched what it is calling a “hyper real” virtual sales showroom to sell its spring/summer 2021 collections after it accelerated its transition to digital options due to the coronavirus pandemic. In a statement, OTB said that the digital showroom would see all of its...

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Accessories boost sales at Marni as turnover jumps to 170m euros

Italian luxury house Marni closed 2019 with turnover of 170 million euros, buoyed by a strong demand for its accessories, which accounts for 58 percent of its total sales. Often regarded as the designer’s designer, Marni’s subtle and subversive creations have always charted their own course with its unique visual language and graphic rigor. The...

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Diesel parent OTB posts 6.4 percent rise in 2019 turnover

OTB, the Italian fashion group’s turnover exceeded 1.5 billion euros, coming in at 1,530 million euros (1,741 million dollars), up 6.4 percent compared to 2018, and growing in all businesses, channels with retail growth of 9 percent, and regions. The company said in a statement that consolidated EBITDA reached 190 million euros (216 million...

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Diesel appoints Massimo Piombini as Chief Executive Officer

OTB has announced the appointment of Massimo Piombini as CEO of Diesel Group. The company said in a statement that he will join the Italian-based company in February 2020 and report to OTB CEO Ubaldo Minelli. “Diesel is an icon that changed the industry with its lifestyle approach, pioneering product and revolutionary communication, and a...

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Marni CEO leaves label and parent company OTB

As the new year approaches, Marni is shifting its leadership. It was announced on November 26 that the Italian brand’s chief executive officer, Stefano Biondo, is exiting the luxury label along with its parent company, OTB. Barbara Càlo, who will be the brand’s general manager, will succeed him. She will report to the OTB CEO Ubaldo Minelli,...

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Paula Cademartori buys back her brand

Luxury accessories designer Paula Cademartori has bought her brand back from holding company OTB. OTB was founded by Renzo Russo, and is also the holding company for Diesel, Maison Margiela, and Viktor & Rolf. The company first invested in the Paula Cadermatori label in 2016. “I would like to thank OTB for the commitment and support over the...