Despite operating in what CEO François-Henri Pinault said was “an increasingly complex world,” Kering’s power brands were undeterred in Q3.
In a Nutshell: Kering reported strong revenue gains in the third quarter that were “well balanced” across its brands and “fueled by sales in the directly operated store network.”
The upward trend was driven by a 16.6 percent comparable-sales gain in Asia-Pacific, a 12.2 percent rise in Western Europe and an 11.9 percent hike in Japan. Online sales climbed 20.1 percent during the period and the wholesale segment increased 8.7 percent.
The French luxury goods group said sales from couture and leather goods continued to rise sharply, fueled particularly by strong sales momentum at Balenciaga and Alexander McQueen.
Sales: Consolidated revenue in the third quarter ended Sept. 30 increased 14.2 percent to 3.88 billion euros ($4.31 billion) compared to the same period a year earlier. Gucci delivered a 13.3 percent increase to 2.37 billion euros ($2.63 billion).
Kering said all of the main product categories contributed to this growth. Growth in sales from directly operated stores, up 10.7 percent on a comparable basis, was led by AsiaPacific with a 17.9 percent gain and Western Europe, ahead 11.9 percent, while wholesale advanced 9.8 percent.
Yves Saint Laurent posted a revenue gain of 13.3 percent to 506.5 million euros ($562.70 million). Growth was balanced across distribution channels, with an 11.4 percent rise in comparable sales from directly operated stores across geographic regions and an 8.2 percent increase from wholesale.
Bottega Veneta saw sales rise 9.8 percent in the quarter to 284.3 million euros ($315.84 million). The company said Daniel Lee’s collections were “extremely well received by established and new customers alike.” Sales from directly operated stores rose 7.5 percent on a comparable basis, with sharp growth in Western Europe and North America.
CEO’s Take: François-Henri Pinault, chairman and CEO, said: “We achieved another strong quarter and all our segments contributed to our solid top-line gain. Our progress, on top of considerable expansion in the past two years, is healthy and well balanced across all houses. We are consolidating our growth trajectory and carrying out continuous, targeted operating investments. We live in an increasingly complex world, but we are fully confident in our capacity to deliver sustained performances over time.”