Kering must downsize, reduce Gucci exposure and chase synergies, CEO de Meo says in memo 

By Tassilo Hummel

PARIS (Reuters) -Kering's return to growth will require reducing its reliance on struggling flagship Gucci, further scaling back its store network and chasing more synergies, Chief Executive Luca de Meo said in a memo seen by Reuters. 

The document, a summary of a more detailed memo dubbed "ReconKering" recently sent to senior staff, offers the first detailed overview of de Meo's strategic vision for the group. 

Emerging less than a month after the group struck a deal to offload its beauty divisionin a $4.7 billion euro deal with l"Oreal to raise much-needed cash and focus on its core luxury fashion business, the note is marked by a candid, yet modest tone. 

"We remain humble," de Meo wrote in the note, saying that his ambition was to "become the undisputed challenger in luxury" in five to ten years. 

Long seen as a threat to its larger French rival LVMH, Kering has been grappling with a double-digit sales decline at its flagship label Gucci while piling up debt through acquisitions. 

De Meo in the memo sets a 18-month timeline to get all brands back on the growth track, while saying that restoring a "top financial performance" will take three years. 

Kering said in a statement de Meo outlined "the foundations of Kering's future strategic plan" when taking over the helm in September, which have since been "broadly communicated with employees." The official strategy plan will be presented to investors next spring, it added. 

In the note, de Meo said the company, which has closed 55 stores in the past year, further needs to downsize its retail network and rethink its price positioning and assortment after years of price hikes. 

It also needs to cut back what de Meo called an "overdependency" on Gucci by developing its Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga brands. 

The group's jewellery division, which has struggled to scale up and compete with the brands of larger rivals LVMH and Richemont, needs to chase synergies, de Meo said. 

Among the brands to develop, de Meo also cited suit maker Brioni, which has been rumoured as a likely divestment candidate along with loss-making fashion label Alexander McQueen. 

Kering shares, which had lost over half of their value in two years, have risen by 75% since de Meo was hired to succeed controlling shareholder Francois-Henri Pinault as chief executive. 

(reporting by Tassilo Hummel, Editing by Nick Zieminski)