The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Shares in the Swiss group that owns Cartier rose nearly 6 percent after the group proposed to double its dividend and flagged strong current trading, with “accelerating trends across all business areas.” In the key Mainland Chinese market, sales more than doubled during the 12-weeks ending March 31, Richemont said. Total revenues for the quarter jumped 36 percent year-on-year (excluding currency shifts), beating analysts’ estimates.
”Underlying demand seems strong with supportive central bank actions, substantial government stimulus packages, and real estate and stock markets at all-time highs,” Richemont’s chairman Johann Rupert said in a statement. But “concerning” developments in the pandemic mean “we will need to learn how to live with the virus probably for much longer than we had hoped,” he added.
During the past 12 months, Richemont’s jewellery brands’ sales rose 3 percent, above pre-Covid levels. Sales of watches took a harder hit, falling 21 percent. The division owning fashion brands Dunhill and Chloé reported a 25 percent drop.
The e-commerce division that operates Yoox Net-a-Porter saw twelve-month sales fall 9 percent. The division now plans to transition to relying less on wholesale, adding more “e-concessions” from top brands in order to “to enrich the breadth of their offering with very light additional capital commitment,” Rupert said.
The duo behind Skims are taking a minority stake in the luxury cashmere label, with an eye on scaling the cult brand.
After headline pieces — sometimes formerly owned by celebrities or featured on TV — sell for blockbuster prices, they can end up pretty much anywhere, from museums to collectors’ closets.
Serre, who grew sales by 20 percent in 2023, has been named Pitti Uomo’s next guest designer. She’s using the opportunity to show her men’s collection for the first time.
Hermès’ elusive sales strategy is at the centre of a new legal challenge for the French luxury giant. BoF breaks down the practices under scrutiny and what the suit could mean for the fashion industry at large.