Frey snaps up Fadini

By Carole Sloan -- Home Textiles Today, 5/10/2004 12:00:00 AM

PARIS —

Pierre Frey has acquired Boussac Fadini which has been in receivership here since January.

The acquisition, approved by the Commercial Court last month, "gives Pierre Frey a presence in the silk sector via Fadini Borghi" as well as the extensive decorative and fire-resistant fabric collection from Boussac, said Patrick Frey, son of the founder and chairman of the group.

The new collections complement the recently launched Pierre Frey furniture collection of sofas, chairs and accent upholstery, lighting, decorative accessories and tabletop. "The acquisition gave us products that add to our range, and also we wanted to save a French textile company," Frey explained.

The new group will have five brands, Frey said: silks by Fadini Borghi, an Italian line ranging from voiles to velvets to jacquards; classic fabrics from Braquenie, acquired by Pierre Frey in 1991; contemporary fabrics from Pierre Frey; the Boussac collection with its origins dating back to 1762; and a very broad selection from Romanex.

On the international market, the French group will feature the Pierre Frey and Boussac brands.

The group formed by the acquisition has an annual revenue of 80 million euros or $95 million. Its combined export sales represent more than 70 percent of turnover, Frey said.

In the United States, Pierre Frey is represented in 16 independent designer agent showrooms; Boussac in 17. "The merger of showrooms and businesses in the United States won't take place till 2005," said Margaret McCutcheon, Pierre Frey's senior vice president in New York.

"We have to begin the reorganization. We only have two common showrooms in the U.S.," she added.