Prada sells Helmut Lang brand to Japan

Prada Group announced Friday it has signed an agreement with Link Theory Holdings Co. Ltd. for the sale of the Helmut Lang label, part of the Italian fashion house's plan to focus on its core brands.

Photo: Prada sells Helmut Lang brand to Japan

Last year, Prada announced the departure of Austrian-born Helmut Lang as creative director of the New York-based brand bearing his name.

The sale of the label was in line with the company's 2005 business plan to focus on the worldwide development of core brands Prada, Miu Miu, Car Shoe and Azzedine Alaia, Prada said in a statement.

The multibrand group, under designer Miuccia Prada, shot to fame in the 1990s with its minimalist fashions. But a spree of acquisitions, including moves to gain control of Helmut Lang and Jil Sander, weighed heavily on the company's books.

Financial details of the Helmut Lang sale were not disclosed. The Tokyo-listed Link Theory distributes women's and men's ready-to-wear under the Theory label, reports the AP.

I.L.