Yahoo Lifestyle Dexelance Eyeing Acquisitions, 2024 Revenues Rose 3 Percent
MILAN — Furnishings, lighting and contract group Dexelance said it continues to eye acquisitions despite market challenges globally.
“We aren’t plagued by interest rates. We completed our IPO in 2023, raising 70 million euros of fresh capital, and in 2024 we continued to generate cash from our operations. We have sufficient equity to complete all the acquisitions we have in the pipeline,” said the firm’s managing director Giorgio Gobbi in an interview.
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Gobbi said the Milan-based group is in talks with a total of seven firms.
Bucking the trend, Dexelance, which recently changed its name from Italian Design Brands, managed to grow its revenues by 3 percent in 2024 to 320 million euros, according to preliminary results, Gobbi said. He added that the luxury contract business, composed by Cenacchi International and Modar, represented around 28 percent of the total revenue. Cenacchi International and Modar work with stores, showrooms, offices, hotels and prestigious homes worldwide.
Another major focus is developing the Davide Groppi, which began as a small factory in the center of Piacenza, Italy during the late 1980s. Last year, during Design Week, Davide Groppi unveiled Endless, an adhesive, conductive strip that can be applied to any kind of surface. Other signature pieces include the Louis XIV, a deconstructed take on the French Rococo chandelier, or the ultra-modern Sottile, a “blade”- like pendant lamp that is 0.7 centimeters thick.
“We need to promote stories like the Davide Groppi, while working on communications, showing the brands’ potential for architectural spaces and create a network of ambassadors around the world. In Davide Groppi’s case, we also want to convey its true potential: the company doesn’t sell lamps, it sells light. It’s an experience,” Gobbi explained, as this year Milan Design Week will turn its focus not only onto furniture, but also on the lighting sector.
The 63rd edition of Salone del Mobile.Milano will also include the 32nd edition of the Euroluce light exhibition. Both Euroluce and Salone del Mobile will run April 8 to 13 at the city’s Rho Fiera trade grounds and will unfold under the theme “Thought for Humans.”
Having listed on the Milan Stock Exchange in an unpredictable market, Dexelance’s shares have fallen considerably since the initial public offering in May 2023, when the shares debuted at 10.88 euros. During midday trading in Milan on Thursday, the shares were valued at 8.93 euros.
Since the listing, however, the company has been focused on international expansion. In October 2023, Dexelance opened its first U.S. flagship in New York City that hosts dedicated showrooms for Meridiani, Davide Groppi and — from May 2024 — Gervasoni. In the same year, it also bought a majority share in Turri, a luxury furniture business founded in 1925 in Carugo near Lake Como, and last year increased its stake up to 100 percent in lighting firm Axolight.
Also in 2023, the group signed with Boston’s Casa Design Italiana to open in the SoWa design district at a time when Giorgetti was introduced and Molteni&C’s opened its expansive boutique and showroom, which sits adjacent to Casa Design Italiana’s Boston headquarters. Dexelance U.S. chief executive officer Renato delle Side said Boston was ripe for growth given its highly educated population and reputation as a cultural and arts mecca.
Dexelance will release its full-year results March 11.
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