Prada Buys Helmut Lang

Prada's purchase this week of the 49 per cent of the Helmut Lang Group it did not already own has been interpreted as a prelude to the sale of the New York-based designer's group ahead of a flotation of Prada next year. Prada, based in Milan, has struggled to integrate the Helmut Lang label since it bought a 51 per cent stake in 1999.