One down

PPR has finally decided to part with trading business CFAO. The division looked like an odd duck in the retail-and-luxury conglomerate’s pond of flashy and not-so-flashy brands, ranging from Gucci to Puma. But it has long been a reliable cash machine. And the controlling Pinault family seemed to have a kind of sentimental attachment to the group’s oldest division. Like all consumer goods-oriented businesses, PPR has been hit by the slump. But the resilience of its flagship Gucci group and a ser...