How the company behind Coach and Kate Spade decides what belongs in its portfolio

The lines between the CFO and COO are increasingly blurring. Scott Roe sits squarely at that intersection at Tapestry, the parent company of Coach and Kate Spade, and (until its recent sale) Stuart Weitzman, overseeing both capital allocation and day-to-day operations. His dual role suggests how Tapestry thinks about strategy: investing in the portfolio and operating the business are part of the same conversation.

That philosophy helps explain why two of Tapestry’s biggest strategic moves, which appeared to point in opposite directions, actually followed the same playbook.

In 2023, Tapestry announced its $8.5 billion bid to acquire Capri Holdings, the owner of Michael Kors, Versace, and Jimmy Choo, in a deal that would have reshaped the accessible luxury landscape. After the FTC blocked the acquisition in late 2024, Tapestry terminated the transaction. Several months later, the company sold Stuart Weitzman, a brand it had owned since 2015.

An expansion followed by a divestiture may look inconsistent. Roe sees both decisions through the same lens: What can Tapestry uniquely bring to an asset that another owner cannot?

The company’s interest in Capri fit neatly within that framework. Michael Kors occupies a similar role in Capri’s portfolio to Coach within Tapestry, creating overlap in leather goods, customer insights, and operating capabilities. By Roe’s measure, the strategic........

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