PARIS (Reuters) – Sales at Gucci, the flagship brand of French luxury group Kering, rose just 4% in the second quarter, the group said on Wednesday, as another round of closures took hold. weighed on revenues in China.
Overall revenue for Kering, which is also home to fast-growing brands like Saint Laurent and Bottega Veneta, was 4.97 billion euros, up 12% on a like-for-like basis.
The market was expecting a turnover of 4.44 billion euros, according to a consensus of Visible Alpha quoted by UBS.
Gucci’s 4% growth in the three months to the end of June contrasts, over the same period, with the 19% increase in sales of LVMH’s fashion and leather goods division, led by the Louis Vuitton and Dior brands. Gucci had posted 13% sales growth in the first quarter.
The group’s chief financial officer, Jean-Marc Duplaix, told reporters that an improvement was seen in China in June, as restrictions on movement linked to the confinements were gradually lifted.
Jean-Marc Duplaix clarified that no less than 35% of Gucci stores in the country were closed in April and May.
The group is working to strengthen Gucci’s management teams in China and is maintaining investments like opening stores in the country, he said.
Kering continues to view the Chinese market as “absolutely key” with growth potential that remains “intact over the long term”, he added.
(Mimosa Spencer report, French version Augustin Turpin, edited by Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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