Revenue at Richemont’s jewelry brands advanced in the third fiscal quarter as demand grew in the US and Europe.
Sales at Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, and Buccellati climbed 11% year on year to EUR 3.72 billion ($4.03 billion) in the three months that ended December 31, the Swiss luxury group reported Wednesday. The increase comes despite an unfavorable comparison with the previous year, when jewelry sales surged 41% amid a post-lockdown boom, Richemont explained.
Jewelry was Richemont’s top-performing division during the quarter, with sales growth across all regions excluding Asia Pacific, which experienced “a significant disruption…due to the massive Covid-19 resurgence in mainland China,” the company noted.
Sales at specialist watchmakers also suffered as a result of China’s virus containment measures. Global revenue from the segment — which includes IWC Schaffhausen, Piaget and Vacheron Constantin — fell 3% year on year to EUR 952 million ($1.03 billion) amid a double-digit decline in Asia Pacific that outweighed strong increases in Europe and Japan.
Group revenue — encompassing jewelry, fashion, accessories and timepieces — rose 8% year on year to EUR 5.4 billion ($5.84 billion).
In the nine months from April to December, jewelry sales jumped 19% to EUR 10.07 billion ($10.89 billion), while sales at specialist watchmakers grew 13% to EUR 3 billion ($3.24 billion). Group sales for the period were up 18% at EUR 15.08 billion ($16.31 billion).
John Bassett
