Fashion
Bestseller CEO’s Klarna stake drives $1.7 billion investment comeback
By
Bloomberg
Published
September 11, 2025
Anders Holch Povlsen has accumulated stakes in listed online retailers, banks, and other finance firms over the past two decades, while overseeing one of the world’s largest closely held fashion fortunes.
But it’s a lucrative bet on Klarna Group Plc that’s currently driving the 52-year-old billionaire’s wealth revamp.
Povlsen, chief executive officer of Danish clothing retailer Bestseller, is among the biggest winners from the initial public offering of the financial technology company, which began trading Wednesday in New York and closed almost 15% above its offering price of $40 per share.
He now owns a roughly $1.4 billion stake in the Swedish business, making it his largest holding in a publicly traded company, while also cashing in at least $250 million from the offering, which priced above the marketed ranges, according to Bloomberg calculations. Povlsen has overall gains of more than 600% from his investment in the provider of buy-now, pay-later financing, taking the value of his disclosed holdings in listed companies to about $2.5 billion, the calculations show.
A representative for Povlsen — who has a total net worth of $6.9 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index — didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.
Despite Klarna’s current valuation falling well below its 2021 peak of $45.6 billion, Povlsen’s investment underscores one of his most successful efforts to diversify a family fortune that began five decades ago, when his parents founded Bestseller as a women’s clothing store in a small Danish town.
Povlsen acquired a 10% stake in Klarna in mid-2017 through his family office, Heartland, just weeks before the fintech was valued at approximately $2.3 billion. He earlier used the investment firm to acquire holdings in e-commerce fashion sites Zalando SE and ASOS Plc. Heartland’s other listed assets include Funding Circle Holdings Plc, a London-based lending platform that has struggled since its initial public offering in 2018.
While also a major landowner in Scotland, most of Povlsen’s fortune remains tied up in Bestseller, where he first began working as a teenager before taking over from his parents as owner and managing director in 2001.
In a rare interview this year to mark Bestseller’s 50th anniversary, Povlsen said he originally wanted to start an e-commerce firm before deciding to work in the family business, underscoring his long-standing interest in the sector that Klarna has helped transform since its own creation in 2005.
“My parents did everything they could to dissuade me from following in their footsteps,” he told the Spin Off fashion magazine. “The more they tried, the more my interest in Bestseller grew.”
Other winners in Klarna’s IPO include the founders Victor Jacobsson, Niklas Adalberth, and Sebastian Siemiatkowski, who’s also its CEO. They cashed in at least $50 million of their combined holdings in the oversubscribed IPO, which valued the company at approximately $15 billion, according to filings.
The three now control overall stakes worth more than $2 billion in Klarna, a company that has evolved from a European clone of PayPal Holdings Inc. to one of the world’s biggest providers of short-term consumer loans as it seeks to disrupt the banking sector.
“You have to be willing to push the envelope,” Siemiatkowski said in an interview Tuesday with Bloomberg News.
Fashion
Netherlands’ goods exports to US fall 4.7% in Jan-Oct 2025
The data showed that the decline was driven mainly by weaker domestic exports, with goods produced in the Netherlands down 8 per cent YoY. In contrast, re-exports to the US rose 3.9 per cent during the period. Exports to the US have fallen every month on a YoY basis since July, CBS said in a press release.
Trade flows were influenced by uncertainty around US import tariffs. In the first half of 2025, trade between the two countries continued to grow, possibly as companies advanced shipments ahead of announced tariff measures.
Goods exports from the Netherlands to the United States fell 4.7 per cent YoY to €27.5 billion (~$33 billion) in the first ten months of 2025, driven by an 8 per cent drop in domestic exports, according to CBS.
Re-exports rose 3.9 per cent, while tariff uncertainty weighed on trade.
Imports from the US increased 1.9 per cent to €48.1 billion (~$57.7 billion).
Meanwhile, imports from the United States rose 1.9 per cent YoY to €48.1 billion (~$57.7 billion) in the first ten months of 2025.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
Fashion
Philippines revises Q3 2025 GDP growth down to 3.9%
The Philippines’ economic growth for the third quarter (Q3) of 2025 has been revised slightly lower, with gross domestic product (GDP) expanding 3.9 per cent year on year (YoY), down from the preliminary estimate of 4 per cent.
Gross national income growth for the quarter was also revised to 5.4 per cent from 5.6 per cent, while net primary income from the rest of the world was adjusted to 16.2 per cent from 16.9 per cent.
The Philippine Statistics Authority has revised down the country’s third-quarter 2025 GDP growth to 3.9 per cent from an earlier estimate of 4 per cent.
Gross national income growth was also lowered to 5.4 per cent, while net primary income from abroad eased to 16.2 per cent.
The PSA said the adjustments reflect its standard, internationally aligned revision policy.
The Philippine Statistics Authority said the revisions were made in line with its approved revision policy, which follows international standards for national accounts updates.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (HU)
Fashion
US’ Levi Strauss reports solid FY25, driven by organic growth
Operating margin improved sharply to 10.8 per cent from 4.4 per cent in FY24, while adjusted EBIT margin increased to 11.4 per cent from 10.7 per cent, marking the third consecutive year of margin expansion. The net income from continuing operations more than doubled to $502 million from $210 million, with adjusted net income rising to $537 million.
Levi Strauss & Co has delivered a strong FY25, with net revenues rising 4 per cent to $6.3 billion and organic growth of 7 per cent, alongside sharp margin expansion and higher profitability.
Q4 saw 5 per cent organic growth, led by Europe, Asia and DTC, which accounted for nearly half of revenues.
The company expects mid-single digit growth and further margin gains in FY26.
Diluted EPS from continuing operations increased to $1.26 from $0.52 in the previous year, while adjusted diluted EPS rose to $1.34 from $1.24. The company generated $530 million in operating cash flow and $308 million in adjusted free cash flow. The company returned $363 million to shareholders during the fiscal, up 26 per cent YoY, LS&Co said in a press release.
In the fourth quarter (Q4) ended November 30, 2025, the company reported net revenues of $1.8 billion, up 1 per cent on a reported basis and 5 per cent organically compared with Q4 FY24. Growth was broad-based, supported by strong momentum in Europe, Asia and Beyond Yoga, alongside high-single digit comparable growth in direct-to-consumer (DTC).
Europe recorded reported revenue growth of 8 per cent and organic growth of 10 per cent, while Asia delivered growth of 2 per cent reported and 4 per cent organically. In the Americas, revenues declined 4 per cent reported but increased 2 per cent organically, with the US business flat on an organic basis. Beyond Yoga continued to outperform, posting reported growth of 37 per cent and organic growth of 45 per cent.
DTC revenues increased 8 per cent on a reported basis and 10 per cent organically, driven by strength across all regions. E-commerce revenues rose 19 per cent reported and 22 per cent organically, with DTC accounting for 49 per cent of total quarterly revenues. Wholesale revenues declined 5 per cent reported and were flat organically.
Operating margin in the quarter was stable at 11.9 per cent, while adjusted EBIT margin declined to 12.1 per cent from 13.9 per cent a year earlier due to tariff-related pressure on gross margins and higher adjusted SG&A expenses. Gross margin stood at 60.8 per cent versus 61.8 per cent in Q4 FY24. Net income from continuing operations was $160 million, with diluted EPS of $0.4 and adjusted diluted EPS of $0.41.
“Over the past few years, we’ve taken bold steps towards becoming a DTC-first, head-to-toe denim lifestyle brand,” said Michelle Gass, president and CEO of Levi Strauss & Co. “We are well on our way toward realising our strategic ambitions. We have narrowed our focus, improved operational execution and built greater agility across the organisation. As a result, we’ve elevated the Levi’s brand and delivered faster growth and higher profitability as reflected by our Q4 and full year 2025 results. While we still have important work ahead, the company is at an inflection point—emerging as a stronger, more resilient global business ready to define the next chapter of LS&Co.”
“We are sustaining our momentum, delivering 5 per cent organic growth in the fourth quarter on top of 8 per cent growth in the prior year. Our success in denim lifestyle has enabled us to expand our addressable market, positioning us for mid-single digit growth in 2026 and beyond,” said Harmit Singh, chief financial and growth officer of Levi Strauss & Co. “Our disciplined approach to converting growth into profitability has improved adjusted EBIT margin again in 2025 for the third year in a row, and we are on track to expand margins further as we strive toward 15 per cent. Our confidence in this trajectory is reflected in a new $200 million ASR program.”
Looking ahead, the company expects mid-single digit revenue growth in fiscal 2026 alongside further adjusted EBIT margin expansion, supported by continued DTC momentum, disciplined cost management and ongoing brand strength, added the release.
Fibre2Fashion News Desk (SG)
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