A Burberry-Coach Merger in the Works?

Burberry Group's shares rose the most in almost eight months today after it has been reported by the Betaville financial blog that Coach Inc. is considering merging with the British trench coat maker. According to the report, Coach has been working with advisers at investment banking firm Evercore for several weeks on a possible deal.

Total Retail's Take: Before speculating on a merger, it should be noted that in-the-know sources have said the luxury brands are not considering one. However, perhaps a merger could help both brands, which are grappling with a slowdown in luxury spending and have reshuffled management to try and turn their fortunes around. We'll have to take a wait-and-see approach here.