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François-Henri Pinault, the billionaire founder, chairman and CEO of Gucci and Saint Laurent parent company Kering Group, is in talks to acquire influential Hollywood talent firm Creative Artists Agency (CAA), Bloomberg has reported.
CAA’s valuation could surpass $7 billion, per the report, which cites anonymous sources. American private equity firm TPG currently owns a majority stake in the agency.
A spokesperson for Kering denied any involvement of the luxury conglomerate. Pinault is also managing partner of family investment vehicle Artémis, whose portfolio includes Christie’s, Courrèges and investments in tech companies such as online marketplaces 1stDibs, Goat and Grailed. A spokesperson for Pinault and Artémis declined to comment. TPG and CAA also declined to comment.
Luxury fashion’s power players are ramping up their presence at the Cannes Film Festival this year, capitalising on its cultural cachet. Vogue Business reports from the premiere of Phony Wars, produced by Saint Laurent.
It comes at a time when fashion brands are increasingly capitalising on their cultural cachet. Saint Laurent created a production arm, which presented its first films during Cannes in May. The ties between fashion and entertainment reached a new peak in June with the blockbuster show from Pharrell Williams for Louis Vuitton (owned by Kering rival LVMH).
CAA was founded in 1975. It represents “thousands of the world’s leading actors, directors, writers, producers, musical artists, comedians, authors, athletes, coaches, broadcasters, teams, leagues, chefs, designers, fashion talent, consumer brands, and more”, according to its website. It has about a dozen offices including in the US and London. Pinault’s wife Salma Hayek is represented by CAA, at least for speaking opportunities. CAA recently signed with designer Daniel Roseberry for projects separate from his role as artistic director of Schiaparelli.
“Luxury has become more and more a cultural phenomenon with a strong link to art and entertainment. The Pinault family clearly knows luxury, and knows art very well, owning Christie’s and with their amazing art collection. Now, they seem to have interest in the entertainment part. If this deal is confirmed, it shows that the Pinault family is continuing to invest in socially- and culturally-relevant industries,” says Mario Ortelli, managing director of strategic and M&A advisory Ortelli Co. “It seems that the investment would be at the family level so we can assume it will be managed separately from Kering, just like Christie’s. The idea of independence is key. Don’t expect CAA talents to all wear Gucci.”
Pierre Mallevays, co-head of merchant banking at Stanhope Capital, agrees: “I don’t think that the Kering brands need François-Henri Pinault to own CAA to be able to secure talents.” Mallevays believes it’s more the business itself that is interesting to Pinault: “I think he sees CAA as a good business. A talent agency is a people business and with the rise of streaming platforms, talents are increasingly in demand.”
The news report came out as Hollywood actors go on strike, joining writers who have been on strike since early May over wages.
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