Golden Goose postpones Milan IPO citing political turmoil in Europe

Italian sportswear brand Golden Goose postponed its Milan IPO on the grounds that the European Parliament elections and the call for a snap election in France have led to “significant deterioration” in market conditions.

Golden Goose, known for its worn-looking trainers which have been made popular by celebrities such as Taylor Swift, was aiming for a market capitalization of up to 1.86 billion euros ($2 billion).

The “current market backdrop is not the right environment to take the company public,” the firm said in a Tuesday statement, adding that an IPO will be reassessed in due course.

The European Parliament elections and the calling of a general election in France impacted not only markets in Europe but the luxury sector in particular, Golden Goose said.

It stressed that the brand’s IPO process had been “engaged widely” with investors. The first day of trading was due to take place on Friday.

France’s far-right National Rally (RN) party won around 31% of the vote in the recent European Parliament elections, prompting French President Emmanuel Macron to call a snap national election.

The record gains for the RN party sparked nationwide protests in France as demonstrators pushed back against rising nationalist sentiment. The French CAC 40 lost more than 6.2% last week to record its worst weekly loss since March 2022.

Golden Goose, which is owned by private equity firm Permira, announced last week that Invesco had committed 100 million euros to the listing as a cornerstone backer.

– CNBC’s Ganesh Rao contributed to this report.