Antitrust in Retail: Handbag Ruling Won't Go Out of Fashion

Antitrust attorneys David Kully, Jennifer Lada and Anna Hayes co-authored a Law360 article analyzing the recent Federal Trade Commission (FTC) v. Tapestry Inc. decision, which blocked the $8.5 billion merger between handbag companies Tapestry (owner of Coach and Kate Spade) and Capri Holdings (owner of Michael Kors). The article examines U.S. District Judge Jennifer Rochon's 169-page opinion, which granted the FTC's preliminary injunction to prevent the merger. The authors highlight key aspects of the ruling, including the court's acceptance of a narrowly defined "accessible luxury handbags" market, its reliance on internal company documents and its treatment of the 2023 Merger Guidelines. They also discuss the potential implications of this decision on future merger challenges, particularly in cases involving narrow market definitions for otherwise interchangeable products.

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