Can the US$42,000 coat survive in LVMH?

Paris

THIS is how luxury is made: At the foot of the Italian Alps, rows of machines sift, comb and twist wool from cashmere goats, Merino sheep and Andean vicuna. In one aisle, a worker in a green polo and khaki pants reattaches some fibres so they can be spun into yarn and become capes or coats that can sell for US$42,000.

Technology aside, it's a process that hasn't changed much since Pier Luigi Loro Piana joined his family's textile business 40 years ago. What's different: Mr Loro Piana, 64, no longer controls the company that bears his name. Since 2013, the manufacturer has been in the hands of French luxury conglomerate LVMH, which paid 2 billion euros (US$3.1 billion) for an 80 per cent stake.