(Yicai) April 17 -- Kering plans to invest in Icicle Carven China France, betting on the Chinese fashion group’s global expansion and push into new product categories, while sharpening the French luxury group’s foothold in China’s premium fashion market.

Kering will take a minority stake in ICCF, with the aim of combining complementary strengths across the luxury industry, Paris-based Kering announced yesterday, without disclosing the size of the holding. 

The tie-up is driven by Kering’s ‘House of Wonders,’ a new strategic initiative to selectively support emerging luxury houses with strong cultural relevance across markets, categories, and geographies, it said. 

Founded in 1997, Icicle is a leading high-end fashion label known for its minimalist elegance, comfort, and wearability. It prioritizes natural fabrics and sustainability, refined craftsmanship, and a contemporary sensitivity.

In 2018, Icicle acquired French fashion label Carven, and the pair merged into ICCF three years later. ICCF, which has headquarters in Paris and Shanghai, is Icicle’s global operating entity.

“With Kering’s expertise across high fashion, ready-to-wear, leather goods, jewelry, eyewear, and other categories, ICCF will build relevant capabilities and experience to further develop new segments and enrich its product matrix,” a source at ICCF told Yicai.

Kering’s investment will support the next growth phase of ICCF’s flagship brand, including the continued international expansion of the brand and the enrichment of its product offering across new categories, the French firm said.

The partnership brings together ICCF’s deep understanding of the Chinese luxury ecosystem and cultural landscape and Kering’s long-standing expertise in craftsmanship, operations, and brand development in Europe, it noted.

As one of the first Chinese high-end fashion brands to go global, Icicle opened a design center in Paris in 2013 and its first boutique in the city in 2019. It now runs five stores in Europe.

Since last year, Icicle has been officially listed on the Paris Fashion Week schedule, regularly presenting new collections from its Paris Atelier and building deep ties with the global fashion community and European consumers.

Despite the shrinking fashion industry, Icicle has achieved double-digit compound annual growth in recent years. Its global revenue exceeded EUR300 million (USD324 million) last year, with more than 200 stores worldwide.

Editors: Tang Shihua, Futura Costaglione