Prada to go forward with IPO

Last month there was speculation that Prada would put off its much-anticipated IPO in light of consumer confidence concerns and weakened investor interest in retail-related companies.

But now Gaetano Micciche, head of Intesa Sanpaolo's corporate and investment banking division, which is managing the IPO, says that the company will push forward with its IPO plans: "To list we will pick the right moment for the operation to be a great success, as the company, I believe, deserves. No delays."

Back in January, I wrote this about about Prada's IPO plans:

Assuming that Prada's IPO plans are indeed unfazed by the luxury market bloodshed, there are two possible scenarios:

1. Prada plans to go ahead with a June IPO because it believes the market will be kinder to luxury goods stocks by then, which would be bullish for the industry now.
2. Prada plans to do the IPO in June because raising money after that will only be more difficult.

Shares of leading luxury couturier Coach (NYSE: COH) have rebounded to right around where they opened this year. This is after Coach shares had a disastrous start trading down about 20% in the first few weeks of January. Investors may be betting that international growth will compensate for any softness in the U.S. luxury market.

Prada's plans to press on with its IPO plan probably signals bullishness that the market will be kinder in June -- and that's good news for investors looking at other luxury retailers.