What is the worst phrase in journalism? That’s a hard question — there are so many of them. One of my least favourite is the very frequently abused phrase, typically used at the end of a story, “whether happens, only time will tell”.
Another phrase we see a lot is “according to people familiar with the” situation/deal/event/matter. You see this often in news reports from wire services like Bloomberg and in formal newspapers like the. I’m intrigued by the assumptions here. It’s so useful and refreshing to know that the person being quoted or interviewed is familiar with the situation. I mean, normally, one would just talk to anyone and slam their view on the record.
When you read these locutions, you can bet one of two things has happened: an external public relations officer has been authorised by the company to make a discreet statement, but might confuse the issue if the speaker was identified. Or a banker involved in the deal is flying a kite to see whether the market likes the idea, but doesn’t want blowback if the market hates the idea, so the information is passed to the journalist on the QT.
Second, LVMH bought US jewellery maker Tiffany for $16-billion which closed in 2021, and by all accounts, the acquisition has worked out fabulously; revenues of the division have doubled in the short time since the takeover. Richemont’s biggest division is the jewellery brand Cartier. If you recently bedded down a fabulous acquisition, wouldn’t you look around for other targets in the same space?
There are of course two reasons why such a deal might never take place. First, Richemont patriarch Johann Rupert and his family have a controlling stake in a dual share structure. . And second, the competition regulation issues involved in such a deal would be just nightmarish, with a good chance that the EU competition authorities would nix the deal straight out.