Benetton to Focus on Growth in Emerging Markets, Chairman Says

Benetton SpA (BEN) will focus on growth in emerging markets such as India, Russia, Turkey and Central America, said Alessandro Benetton, who today replaced his father Luciano as chairman of the clothing maker.

“We need to be very opportunistic,” Benetton said in a Bloomberg Television interview at the company’s annual meeting today in Treviso, Italy.

The February decision to delist the company from the Italian Stock Exchange was inevitable because the group needs to have a “longer-term horizon” for strategy, he said.

The company also must work on its marketing strategy to convince consumers it has “high-quality products at an accessible price,” said Benetton, whose appointment was confirmed by shareholders at today’s meeting.

To contact the reporter on this story: Chiara Vasarri in Rome at cvasarri@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jerrold Colten at jcolten@bloomberg.net