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Business Wire
5 days ago
- Business
- Business Wire
lululemon Expands International Presence with First Store Opening in Italy
VANCOUVER, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--lululemon (NASDAQ:LULU) continues to grow its international footprint with the upcoming launch of its first store in Italy, which will be opening in the heart of Milan's iconic shopping district on Saturday, July 19, 2025. Located at Vittorio Emanuele II 24/28, the new store will introduce lululemon's innovative athletic apparel and accessories to the Italian market, furthering the brand's vision to unlock greater possibility and wellbeing for all. The Milan store's full concept will span approximately 5,700 square feet across two floors, offering a thoughtfully curated environment for guests with distinct spaces dedicated to lululemon's signature technical innovations. The two floors will showcase the brand's men's and women's collections – all designed through the lens of high-performance, high-style to support a wide range of activities including yoga, running, training, tennis, and golf. Paying homage to Italy's rich design heritage, the store is expected to feature a locally inspired architectural concept that blends traditional craftsmanship with contemporary materials. A standout feature of the new store is anticipated to be the lululemon Glide sculptural façade – a striking visual expression of movement and form. The custom 3-D printed installation is set to draw inspiration from lululemon's iconic Define Jacket pattern, and its flowing geometry is designed to expand and move across the storefront, emulating the properties of fabric on an architectural scale. In line with lululemon's omni-channel vision, the Milan store aims to offer a fully integrated guest experience. Guests can enjoy seamless access to the brand's full range via the Endless Aisle BBR (Back Back Room) solution, which is designed to help ensure availability of product beyond what is stocked in-store. International visitors will benefit from Global Blue Tax-Free Shopping, further enhancing the guest experience in one of Europe's most popular tourist destinations. Strategic Growth Across EMEA The Milan store opening marks a significant step in lululemon's international expansion. The brand already operates stores in key markets including the UK, Ireland, Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland. Entering Italy is part of lululemon's broader Power of Three ×2 growth plan, which aims to quadruple international revenue from 2021 levels by year-end 2026. Building Community lululemon is grounded in product innovation, guest experience, and a deep commitment to building meaningful connections. In Milan, the brand expects to engage with the local community through a series of activations planned throughout the year, which may include partnerships with local studios, run clubs, and a new ambassador program. These initiatives are intended to reflect lululemon's holistic approach to wellbeing – supporting the physical, mental, and social health of the community it serves. About lululemon lululemon (NASDAQ:LULU) is a technical athletic apparel, footwear, and accessories company for yoga, running, training, tennis, golf, and other activities. It creates transformational products and experiences that build meaningful connections, unlocking greater possibility and wellbeing for all. Setting the bar in innovation of fabrics and functional designs, lululemon works with athletes in local communities around the world for continuous research and product feedback. For more information about lululemon's Milan opening and latest product collections, visit or follow @lululemoneurope on social media. Forward-looking statements: This press release contains forward-looking statements, which reflect lululemon's current expectations and plans. These statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied. Factors that could affect our future performance are included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, including our most recent reports on Forms 10-K, 10-Q, and 8-K. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release.
Yahoo
15-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Global Blue Group Holding AG (GB): A Bull Case Theory
We came across a bullish thesis on Global Blue Group Holding AG on Iceman Capital's Substack. In this article, we will summarize the bulls' thesis on GB. Global Blue Group Holding AG's share was trading at $7.36 as of July 14th. GB's trailing P/E was 17.98 according to Yahoo Finance. Photo by Clay Banks on Unsplash Global Blue (GB) is the dominant global player in VAT tax refunds, commanding over 70% market share in the Tax-Free Shopping (TFS) space—nearly three times the size of its nearest competitor. TFS generates 76% of GB's revenue, where GB captures ~2.5% of gross transaction value by partnering with merchants to offer seamless VAT refund processing. The firm has digitized nearly the entire refund experience, increasing efficiencies and improving key success metrics like issue and refund ratios. These improvements have contributed to market share gains, particularly in countries like Spain. GB's Payments segment accounts for 18% of revenue, offering acquiring, dynamic currency conversion (DCC), and multi-currency gateways, earning revenue from FX spreads and transaction fees, often layered on top of TFS economics. Its Post-Purchase Solutions (~6% of revenue) have been strengthened via acquisitions like ZigZag (returns logistics), Yocuda (digital receipts and CRM), and ShipUp (order tracking), creating further stickiness and expanding its merchant offerings. GB's competitive moat is built on switching costs, merchant contracts, digitized infrastructure, and data scale—capturing 50 data points per transaction. Its positioning in the luxury and travel markets offers pricing resilience and growth, supported by long-term sector CAGRs of 5%+. With 41 million transactions averaging €587 in FY2025, GB's exposure is skewed to premium shoppers. Its merger with Shift4 (FOUR) adds international capabilities, merchant overlap, and cross-sell potential, with expected $80M in revenue and $70M in EBITDA synergies. At a deal price of $2.5B (13.3x TTM EV/EBITDA), the transaction appears attractively valued and strategically sound. Previously, we covered a on Shift4 Payments, Inc. (FOUR) by Iceman Capital in June 2025, which highlighted the company's acquisition of Global Blue as a strategic move into high-margin international markets. The company's stock price has appreciated by approximately 9.38% since our coverage. Iceman Capital, in this thesis, conducts a deep dive into the acquiree Global Blue (GB), emphasizing its scale, digitized moat, and luxury travel exposure. Together, they present compelling investment opportunities in the FinTech segment . Global Blue Group Holding AG is not on our list of the 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 44 hedge fund portfolios held GB at the end of the first quarter which was 0 in the previous quarter. While we acknowledge the potential of GB as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock. READ NEXT: 8 Best Wide Moat Stocks to Buy Now and 30 Most Important AI Stocks According to BlackRock. Disclosure: None. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Shift4 strategy segues with Global Blue
This story was originally published on Payments Dive. To receive daily news and insights, subscribe to our free daily Payments Dive newsletter. Shift4's latest acquisition, of the Swiss payments technology firm Global Blue, has perplexed analysts who follow the digital payments processor. When the Allentown, Pennsylvania-based payment company pursues other companies to buy, it generally targets firms that can help it extend payment processing services to more merchants, according to analysts who cover the company. But Global Blue's merchant customers are already well-served by major payment players. Shift4 has a solid history of acquisitions, Evercore ISI analyst Adam Frisch said in an interview. "But this one, from a strategic point of view, seems a little off." Shift4 buys other companies with the intent to access more merchants, Frisch said. "Global Blue offers access to merchants, but via a path which is somewhat unorthodox to how they've done it in the past,' he explained. The Pennsylvania processor announced in February that it plans to buy Global Blue for an enterprise value — which includes taking on debt — of $2.5 billion. The company announced on Thursday that the merger is complete. Prior to Thursday's announcement, Shift4 extended a tender offer to buy all of Global Blue's outstanding shares five times, according to filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Analysts who follow the company, including Matt Coad of Truist Securities, said the delays were not a reason for concern. "There are complexities" in international mergers, he said in an interview prior to the merger's completion. "Swiss regulators are doing more due diligence. Extending the offer isn't a big deal. Shift4 has a strong plan to make the acquisition work by merging a key tax processing service with its own, Thomas McCrohan, Shift4's executive vice president for investor relations, said in a July interview. The purchase will be the firm's largest. The company already operates in Europe, Asia and South America at about 400,000 retail and hospitality locations, but the acquisition will extend its reach. The deal is 'a little bit different for (Shift4), but makes sense as they continue to push into international markets,' Gimme Credit Senior Bond Analyst Stu Novick said by email in February. Some of Shift4's other recent purchases include Smartpay Holdings last month, which operates a distribution network selling payment services to businesses in Australia and New Zealand, and the Canadian firm Eigen Payments last December. The Smartpay purchase was "another acquisition that will run the Shift4 playbook," RBC Capital Markets analyst Dan Perlin said in a June note to investors. Shift4 will almost certainly encourage Eigen customers to move to its processing platform, Perlin wrote. Eigen offers point-of-sale and online ordering services and serves a different clientele than Shift4, said Matt Coad, an analyst for Truist Securities, which gives the payment processing company an opportunity to market to Eigen's existing clients. The payments processor follows a similar strategy with most of its mergers by looking for companies that can help it reach more merchant clients, he said. That makes the Global Blue acquisition somewhat confounding, because the Swiss company serves higher-end merchants who already work with well-known payment companies like Ayden and Stripe, Coad said. Global Blue's customers include high-end luxury brands such as Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Valentino, and Prada, said Shift4 President Taylor Lauber in a February Earnings call with investors. "It's hard to win that payment processing from Adyen and Stripe," Coad said. While major luxury retailers like Louis Vuitton might not be willing to jump ship, Global Blue also works with smaller luxury retailers, McCrohan said. "We're not approaching Global Blue thinking that we're going to displace Adyen," he said. "We're approaching them thinking that they have a long tail of single location boutique customers that are reliant on a local bank" for payment processing. Those retailers might be persuaded to switch thanks to a secret weapon Shift4 will gain in the struggle for merchant clients: a value-added tax refund processing service offered by Global Blue. Countries like France and Germany charge a value-added tax (VAT) — a complex levy that takes into account various stages in the supply chain that moves a product from the factory floor to the store shelves — on high-end purchases. The U.S. does not charge a value-added tax, which means travelers from this country who buy a product in a foreign nation or have something shipped to the U.S. from a VAT country can have the value of the tax refunded to them. Few of Shift4's competitors offer VAT refund processing, McCrohan said. It's a 'unique and important capability," he said. Recommended Reading Shift4 buys Smartpay for $180M Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
BBC News
07-07-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Jersey GST reclaim a 'stepping stone' to luring visitors
Jersey shops are being encouraged to sign up to a scheme allowing international visitors to claim back Goods and Services Tax (GST) on self-service kiosks have been installed at the harbour and airport for visitors to submit receipts and claim £4 in GST for every £100 spent. The government is working with tax refund firm Global Blue on its Tax Free Shopping scheme in a bid to boost Jersey as a retail Youden, the director of fashion outlet de Gruchy, which is taking part in the scheme, believed it would help boost sales and part of a "stepping stone to the wider picture" of increasing visitation. Derrick Hardman, regional chief operating officer for Global Blue, said a handful of shops had signed up to the scheme but more had expressed an this month the threshold on how much visitors have to spend to claim back GST decreased from £250 to £100 on purchases from the same retailer on the same Youden said customers had spent more as a result of the scheme."[If customers spend £90] it's a way of the sales colleague to introduce just an extra £10 and they get a little bit of money back," he goods include fashion and accessories, cosmetics, watches and jewellery and leather qualify, shoppers must present their passport and depart Jersey within 31 days of purchase.
Yahoo
04-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Shift4 wraps up purchase of paytech firm Global Blue
Integrated payments company Shift4 Payments has completed the acquisition of Swiss payments and technology firm Global Blue. The deal, first announced in February this year, valued the company at nearly $2.5bn. Global Blue, with a history of over 40 years, is known for its tax-refund and currency conversion technology services used by retailers and hospitality providers in Europe, Asia, and South America. Global Blue's merchant solutions will be integrated into Shift4's payment platform to deliver a more service offering to merchants. Global Blue, known for its extensive network, connects a large number of international shoppers with merchants and engages with consumers through its dedicated app. Following the acquisition, Shift4 Payments and Global Blue plan to introduce a new payment terminal that combines VAT refund, DCC, and payment processing in a single device. The acquisition also results in partnerships with Ant International and Tencent, aiming to explore potential collaborations on global e-commerce payment products. This includes potentially incorporating payment services such as Alipay+ and WeChat Pay into the Shift4 ecosystem. Upon conclusion, the board of directors of Global Blue has been reconstituted with appointees from Shift4 Payments. Shift4 CEO Taylor Lauber said: 'By integrating Global Blue into our end-to-end platform, we're further expanding our global reach and solidifying our position as a leading unified commerce provider that adds meaningful value to our merchants around the world.' Shift4 Payments also intends to remove Global Blue shares from the New York Stock Exchange and carry out a squeeze-out merger to acquire the remaining minority shares. "Shift4 wraps up purchase of paytech firm Global Blue " was originally created and published by Electronic Payments International, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
