Stellar growth in China helped sales at fashion group Tod’s bounce back to grow by 19 percent at constant exchange rates in the first quarter, slightly above market expectations but still below pre-pandemic levels, the group said on Wednesday.

The group said sales had risen to €178.7 million ($215.76 million) in the three months to end-March, compared with analyst forecasts of €168 million, according to a consensus published by Refinitiv.

Due to weakness in Europe and North America, revenues remained below the €216 million mark reached in the first quarter of 2019.

Sales in Greater China, which is now the biggest market for the group, jumped by 142 percent in the quarter, and stood 28 percent above their level for the same period in 2019. China was the first region to be hit by the coronavirus emergency but also the first to re-open shops and relax movement restrictions.

Revenues fell 15 percent in North America and also posted a double-digit decline in Europe, where new lockdowns were imposed in the first part of this year.

Last year, the fallout from the pandemic triggered a revenue fall of almost a third for Tod’s, one of the worst performances in the sector, marking the fifth year in a row of falling annual sales for the group.

By Claudia Cristoferi; Editor: Silvia Aloisi