Liverpool One has enhanced its premium retail watch line-up with the arrival of Breitling making its city debut. The luxury Swiss watchmaker has opened a showcase space alongside Paradise Street’s line-up of flagship stores from leading international retailers.
It showcases the brand’s selection of timepieces in a 3,200 sq ft, double-height unit, joining the centre’s selection of luxury jewellery retailers including Goldsmiths, David M Robinson, and Swarovski.
Reflecting Breitling’s signature industrial design, the new store will allow visitors “to immerse themselves in the full Breitling experience, exploring the brand’s extensive collection of iconic timepieces”. This includes the Navitimer, Superocean, Chronomat, and Premier ranges, along with exclusive UK edition timepieces.
The boutique also offers a “relaxing and welcoming atmosphere”, featuring a Triumph motorcycle centrepiece, along with a fully stocked bar.
Rob Deacon, director of asset management at Liverpool One, called Breitling’s arrival “a standout addition… adding even more gravitas to our leading line-up and customer offering. To have established Liverpool One as a UK hotspot for world-renowned brands such as Breitling is no small feat and paves the way for an exciting 2025.”
The latest opening follows Liverpool One’s busiest Christmas and start to the year since 2019, with footfall up 10% and a strong uplift of 7% in overall sales.
Capri Holdings Limited announced on Friday the promotion of Philippa Newman to the role of chief brand and product officer at Michael Kors, effective immediately.
Michael Kors
In her expanded role, Newman will oversee all product and marketing functions, according to the U.S. luxury giant, which also owns the Versace and Jimmy Choo brands. She will continue reporting directly to John Idol, chairman and CEO of Capri Holdings and Michael Kors.
“Michael Kors has incredible brand equity, and I am honored to step into this role at such a pivotal time,” said Newman. “I look forward to working alongside John, Michael, and our talented teams to effectively execute our product and brand strategies and drive long-term growth.”
Serving at Michael Kors for over 16 years, Newman most recently serving as the chief product officer, where she has proven crucial in driving product innovation and shaping our strategy for growth. As chief brand and product officer, the luxury executive will focus on delivering a unified brand experience aligned with the New York brand’s heritage, ensuring that Michael Kors continues to create fashion and core products with strong consumer appeal while driving engagement across all touchpoints, according to a press release.
“Ms. Newman is an exceptional leader with deep brand expertise and a strategic mindset,” said Idol. “By bringing product and marketing under one cohesive leadership structure, we are creating greater synergy across our business, enabling a clear and consistent brand vision, and strengthening our ability to connect with consumers globally.”
Earlier this month, Capri Holdings forecast revenue well below Wall Street estimates for its fiscal 2026, on the back slowing demand for luxury goods and unrelenting declines in the Americas and Asia.
Capri said it now expects fiscal 2026 net revenue to total $4.1 billion, compared with analysts’ estimates of $4.52 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG. It also forecast fiscal 2025 revenue of $4.4 billion, below analysts’ expectations of $4.51 billion.
The brands are Ancuta Sarca, Di Petsa, ELV Denim, Karoline Vitto, Labrum London, Masha Popova, Sinéad O’Dwyer and Tolu Coker, among whom are some of the most exciting designers coming out of British fashion at present.
The event takes place across 6-11 March at 2 Rue Saint-Sauveur, Paris 75002 and “provides an invaluable commercial opportunity for emerging British designers to showcase their brand to a leading audience of international press and buyers”.
The pop-up showroom is a “strategic element of the BFC Foundation”, which supports designers via talent schemes including NewGen and the BFC Fashion Trust.
One of the primary goals of the BFC overall is supporting emerging designer names through a variety of initiatives including financial help, publicity, putting them in front of key buyers, mentoring and more.
Appointment-only London Show Rooms has been running since 2008 and is an important piece of exposure for emerging labels in a showroom environment during Paris Fashion Week. The initiative is supported by Sarah Mower, BFC Ambassador for Emerging Talent.
Italian prosecutors are investigating e-commerce giant Amazon and three of its executives over alleged tax evasion worth €1.2 billion ($1.26 billion), two sources with direct knowledge of the matter said on Friday.
News of the investigation broke last year, but the details over its extent only emerged on Friday. Italian daily Corriere della Sera was the first to report on them.
Amazon did not immediately respond to a request for comment and did not comment when the investigation was first reported.
Milan prosecutors and tax police placed the three managers and Amazon’s Luxembourg-based European unit under investigation for tax fraud in online sales in Italy during 2019-2021, the sources said on Friday.
They said the bill for Amazon could rise to €3 billion, taking into account penalties and interest.
According to the sources, Amazon’s algorithm allows it to sell in Italy goods from non-EU sellers, mostly Chinese, without disclosing their identity, helping them avoid paying Italian valued-added tax (VAT).
Under Italian law, an intermediary offering goods for sale in Italy is co-responsible for the non-payment of VAT by non-EU sellers that use its e-commerce platform.
The investigation, which started in 2021, resulted from routine checks carried out by tax police in an area north of Milan, the two sources said. They could not be named because they were not authorised to speak publicly on the issue.
In a separate investigation, Italian tax police in July 2024 seized approximately €121 million from an Italian unit of Amazon as part of an investigation into alleged tax fraud and illegal labour practices that is ongoing.