Report: Farfetch Founder José Neves Aims to Take Company Private 

The founder of online luxury fashion retailer Farfetch, José Neves, reportedly aims to take the company private. 

Neves, who has a 15% stake and 77% of the voting rights, is working with advisors at JPMorgan on the potential move, Reuters reported Tuesday (Nov. 28), citing a paywalled article by the Telegraph. 

Reached by PYMNTS, a Farfetch spokesperson declined to comment on the report.

The retailer said in a Tuesday press release that it will not announce its third quarter 2023 financial results and will not hold a previously scheduled conference call related to those results. 

“The company expects to provide a market update in due course,” Farfetch said in the release. “The company will not be providing any forecasts or guidance at this time, and any prior forecasts or guidance should no longer be relied upon.” 

The efforts by Neves to take the company private follow a troubled New York Stock Exchange listing, according to the Reuters report. 

Farfetch’s stock has fallen 64% this year but gained 20% after news of Neves’ efforts was published, the report said. 

Major backers like Chinese eCommerce firm Alibaba and Swiss luxury group Richemont have given their tentative backing to Neves’ move, per the report. 

Farfetch brought in $885 million through its initial public offering (IPO) in September 2018. The retailer and a shareholder sold 44.2 million shares at a price of $20 each, which was above the $17 to $19 range at which it had advertised the shares. 

About a year later, in August 2019, the company’s shares fell to 50% of their IPO price after it reported big losses and investors questioned whether its then-recent acquisition of New Guards made sense for a company that isn’t profitable, according to reports at the time. 

More recently, in May, Farfetch reported a turnaround after two consecutive quarters of sales decline. The retailer surpassed analysts’ expectations by achieving 8% year-over-year revenue growth, which it attributed to an enhanced inventory management strategy, strategic partnerships and strong in-store sales. 

A month later, in June, it was reported that Farfetch shares had been on the rise due to traders’ continued bullish response to the strong earnings results the retailer announced in May.