After the acquisition in 2015 of the Ponant cruise company, Group Artémis, the private investment company of the Pinault family, acquired a majority stake in Aqua Expeditions, another luxury cruise line renowned for its explorations in places emblematic for their biodiversity.
The latest results of the luxury group Kering have highlighted its difficulties and increased the conviction of the need for a diversification strategy for the holding company. With fashion losing momentum, it makes sense for the Pinault family to step back from this sector and redirect investments towards new horizons. This is precisely what François-Henri Pinault has decided to do by directing his efforts towards a new growth sector: cruises.
According to a report by Bain and Company published last autumn, the luxury cruise market grew by 130 to 140% in 2024 compared to 2019, reaching 5 billion euros.
In 2015, the private investment company of the Pinault family, Group Artémis - the Pinault family's holding company founded in 1992 by François Pinault - had already acquired the French cruise company Ponant, the world leader in polar expeditions and a pioneer in sustainable tourism. The company is known for its exclusive trips to unspoiled locations and has 13 ships specializing in Arctic and Antarctic waters. Ponant has acquired a majority stake in Aqua Expeditions, another luxury cruise line renowned for its explorations in places emblematic for their biodiversity, such as the Galápagos, the Indonesian archipelago of Raja Ampat, Komodo, the Maluku Islands, the Mekong Delta, and the Peruvian Amazon.
Aqua Expeditions has only five ships, each capable of carrying between 16 and 40 passengers. The acquisition is, therefore, not a huge deal in this developing market, but it represents a significant step forward in increasing the Pinault family's presence in the luxury cruise sector. The terms of the agreement with the Singapore-based company have not been disclosed. According to Bloomberg, Francesco Galli Zugaro, the Peruvian founder of Aqua Expeditions, will retain shares and continue to run the brand. The company will maintain its commercial and operational autonomy.
Hervé Gastinel, the businessman who has been running Ponant since 2021, has announced that the current objective is to double Ponant's turnover within the next four years. The company ended 2024 with revenues of more than 500 million euros.
Adaptability and growth opportunities in various sectors - particularly real estate and high-end tourism - should enable Kering to strengthen itself in market turbulence.
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