NEW ICON GROUP

What does Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger, Bernard Arnault

and Francois Pinault have in common with us?
 Like
Why invest in luxury?
New
Icon With the global luxury goods market forecast to be
worth around $355.5 billion by 2027, up from $310

Group, billion in 2021, luxury brands companies look set to

enjoy strong tailwinds in the years ahead.

they all While the term “luxury” can be hard to define, it’s
not hard to spot luxury goods. Rolex watches, Louis
invest in Vuitton handbags, Chanel sunglasses and Tiffany &
Co jewellery are some examples we are most likely
luxury. familiar with. These types of products are known
for their quality, durability, heritage and rarity - and
they’re coveted by affluent consumers the world
over, despite their high price tags.

As for why luxury goods are so popular and seen

as desirable by society, it all comes down to the
exclusivity factor. Luxury brands do not seek to
serve the masses. Instead, they want their products
to be expensive and scarce. Ultimately, it’s this
scarcity that makes these goods so appealing to
consumers. In addition, for many people, luxury
goods are status symbols. If a product is exclusive, it
makes a statement about the owner.

Looking at the luxury goods market from an

investment angle, there appears to be a compelling
opportunity. Thanks to the power of their brands,
many luxury goods companies are generating
sizeable profits today. Meanwhile, the market for
luxury products is projected to grow substantially
over the next decade as the world’s middle class
expands and technology makes it easier for brands
to connect with their customers.
Why luxury goods stocks can be
profitable long-term investments.

From a long-term investment point of view, luxury

goods companies have many things to like.

For starters, most have compelling brands. Take

LVMH, the world’s largest luxury brands company.
Its brands include Louis Vuitton, Moët & Chandon,
Tag Heuer, Givenchy, Christian Dior and Tiffany & Co
- all of which are well known worldwide. A strong
brand is a competitive advantage, as it creates
customer loyalty. Consumers are willing to go the
extra mile to get hold of a brand name they love.

A dominant brand also means pricing power.

Unlike companies that sell necessities, luxury goods
companies can raise their prices because they are
confident that their deep-pocketed customers will
be happy to pay up. Rolex, for instance, increased
prices on many of its stainless-steel watches by
more than 10% per annum. This kind of pricing
power can potentially guard against inflation, which
is currently negatively affecting other areas of the
retail industry.
On top of this, powerful brands tend to lead to
above-average operating margins and returns on
capital. British fashion powerhouse Burberry is a
good example here. Between 2017 and 2021, it had
an average operating margin of 15% and an average
return on capital of 19.5%. By contrast, the average
operating margin and return on capital across the
UK’s FTSE 100 Index over this period were 14% and
14.4%, respectively.
Finally, companies that sell luxury goods also tend
to be quite resilient. In 2020, around half of the top
100 luxury goods companies globally remained
profitable. One reason is that affluent individuals
typically aren’t affected as much by economic
downturns.
As a result of their competitive advantages, high
profitability and resilience, luxury goods stocks
have generated solid returns for investors in the past.
For example, just look at the performance of the
S&P Global Luxury Index. For the ten years leading
up to March 31, 2022, it delivered a total return of
12.2% per year 1, comfortably outperforming the
MSCI World Index, which returned 10.9% per year 2.
 Technology will be a game -
changer for luxury goods.

Of course, the growth of e-commerce could also

play a significant role expanding the luxury brands
market over the next decade.

Before the coronavirus pandemic, many luxury

brand companies were reluctant to sell their goods
online due to fears that selling over the internet
could harm their brands. However, when luxury
boutiques worldwide were forced to close during
COVID-19, these companies had to adapt. As a
result, the share of purchases made online for
luxury goods shot up, reaching 23% of total sales in
2020 versus 12% in 2019.

Investing in luxury is a fantastic

way to boost your portfolio:
What do we invest in?

New Icon is focused on acquiring companies in four

Looking ahead, we can expect e-commerce to
continue driving growth, as many luxury brands
are now really embracing this form of retail. Hugo
Boss for example, is currently targeting online
sales of €400 million this year, up from €221 million
in 2020. In addition, new technologies such as
augmented reality (AR), which can help companies
create “virtual dressing rooms,” and instant
payments, which can lead to more streamlined
transactions, should help boost growth here.
key areas of luxury: The Yachting Industry, Aviation,
Food and Beverage, and any other luxury focused
company. These industries are forecast to grow
substantially over the next decade as we have seen
companies involved in these sectors emerge from
recessions quicker and tend to be more valuable.
Our model, therefore, is to acquire private
companies involved in these industries and invest
in listed Stocks and Options.

So why would a luxury
private company owner
want to sell to us?
Difficulty in selling their business.
In the European Union, 3/4 of all SMEs for sale
never find a buyer. That’s profoundly worrying as
most owners see their business as their pension,
with many facing a bleak outlook if they can’t sell.
It is also challenging for a small business to find
a willing buyer. Moreover, even if one can identify
such a buyer, hardly any will pay all cash up-front,
preferring ‘earn-outs’ based on extremely onerous
targets over many years.
They often have a lack of capital
to grow the company.
Often, owners have great ideas to grow their
business but lack money to execute these plans.
This lack of working capital is possibly the most
significant barrier to a company’s growth. The
inability to implement strategies designed to break
through their “glass ceiling” perpetually stifles a
company’s growth and can prevent them from
scaling and becoming the size the owners have
always dreamt.
The benefits of selling
their company to us.
Our alternative route for owners is to sell their
business to us and stay to see it grow. We undertake
a full share-for-share swap in acquiring a company
which is a highly tax-efficient way to do so. The main
benefits of this for an owner are:
Access to capital.
The ability of a PLC to access capital markets and
offer owners invaluable operating cash is a game-
changer for SMEs when other sources dry up in a
crisis like Covid.

Tax savings.

Selling a business crystallizes a corporation tax

The cost to sell a business is high.
There are endless meetings, emails and phone
calls, all of which can add up to high indirect costs.
However, direct costs of accountant’s fees, attorney
fees, valuation fees and tax can typically cost 25% or
more of the sale price.
Additionally, we can inject capital into the company
so an owner can now execute their grand plans for
expansion and see it grow the way they’ve always
dreamt, making the company more valuable to us
in the process.
gain of 15-20% in the UK, and individual share-
holders may be taxed on their holding. However,
in a share-swap transaction, there could be little to
no corporation tax to pay, as HMRC treats a share
swap as a non-disposal. Other countries also have
similar exemptions.
Guaranteed exit.
Owners face the real risk of never finding a buyer
for their company. With New Icon, they can sell
their shares and slowly start to retire and enjoy
their future.
 So, what are the benefits for
subscribing shareholders?

Our goal is to grow by acquiring companies and

simultaneously invest in high-quality Stocks and
Options using Warren Buffett’s methods.

A significant part of our success in acquiring

companies will be to take advantage of the
valuation difference between SME’s and our PLC.
For example, we can buy a company for 2-5 times
its profit (the average multiple a private company
sells for in UK and EU) and once owned, we
can double that valuation: Why? Because SME
valuations get crushed due to perceived risk,
whereas PLCs are seen as less risky and therefore
carry a higher valuation. If we buy an SME for GB 1M,
it might be worth GB 2-3M on our balance sheet,
which will significantly benefit our shareholders as
it is highly accretive for our stock price.
Additionally, we invest in Large Cap Stocks and
Options and trade on the US and the UK markets,
where we select investments using our Warren
Buffett screeners, which allows us to buy into great
companies such as IBM, Coca-Cola, Amazon, Apple
Etc at steep discounts.
This combination of buying into companies at
substantial discounts and, in parallel, growing

our stock portfolio will yield handsome gains and

dividends for investors over the years ahead.

Lastly, we are seeking a listing on a UK or EU

based stock exchange which will provide a depth
of liquidity for our stockholders as well as the
opportunity for significant gains.
 How will it benefit
our shareholders?
As we invest in Large Cap listed stocks like Apple,
IBM, Amazon, Tesla etc, and buy private companies
involved in luxury, this combined approach will help
us grow substantially over the years ahead.
There appears to be a pent-up demand for
company owners to sell their business and we
aim to tap into this market, which will in turn,
make our share price highly attractive.
The opportunity for investors is to subscribe to our
shares at pre-IPO prices before we list on a stock
exchange in the UK/EU.
So, whether you are looking to invest for growth,
income, retirement or education, we believe buying
our stock will enrich your future.
You can invest from as little as GB, USD, or EUR
10,000 as a lump sum or GB, USD, EUR 5000 plus
500 per month by wire transfer, standing order or
credit card.
Contact us on the form on our website at
www.newicon. group or speak to your advisor.
Who are New Icon Group?
The New Icon Group is the
trading name of Iconetic
PLC and is registered in
Dublin. Our board consists of
industry professionals from
within the world of Finance.
Our Dubai based group CEO
Richard Baxter has a background in economics
and has ran Hedge Funds and Fund Management
companies for over two and a half decades, and has
a long history of being an active stock trader.
Nicole Herbert is group CFO and
as an accountant has managed
the finances of large insurance
companies to Hedge Funds.
Nicole has also worked in many
large financial institutions in
the Caribbean where she has taken control of all
financial situations from mergers and acquisitions,
payroll, financial analysis to audit work.
Kamran Khan is group CIO and from 2008 to
2015 was an Executive Director at Prosperitus
Partners, a corporate finance advisory firm focused
on mergers and acquisitions and private capital
markets transactions. Prior to
this role, Kamran worked in the
investment banking industry
for Goldman Sachs & Co as
well as UBS Warburg across a
variety of roles within equity
capital markets.
 NEW ICON GROUP

Call us on - +377 6 80 86 50 44 or visit our website at - www.newicon.group -

Address - 8 Avenue des Ligures, Seaside Plaza, Monaco 98000.