HERMÈS IN THE STORM
Shares in Hermès International dipped in morning trading in Paris on Thursday after the French luxury house reported first-half results that fell below analysts’ expectations, as the widespread closure of stores due to the coronavirus pandemic sharply impacted its business and profitability.
Like other French luxury companies that reported second-quarter results this week, Hermès saw revenues plummet despite strong growth in mainland China and robust online sales. Its sales declined 41.3 percent to 982.5 million euros in the three months ended June 30, representing a drop of 41.5 percent in comparable terms.
Net income in the first six months of the year fell 55.6 percent to 335 million euros. Operating profit was down 53.2 percent to 535 million euros, with the operating margin sliding to 21.5 percent from 34.8 percent in the same period a year ago, weighed down by the fact that the company manufactures many of its goods. Continue reading
CELINE NOT TIK BUT TOK
Celine is new to the TIkTok platform, with about 5,000 followers, and livestreamed its spring men’s wear show, a slick production with models hoofing it around an old motor-racing track near Marseille, some wearing sparkly helmets.
Hedi Slimane paraded seemed aimed squarely at Gen Z, no matter if some users of the app don’t seem to have a clue that Celine is a luxury French fashion brand and that Slimane is known for commissioning a single track of music and stretching it over 15 minutes. “Change the song,” countless TikTokers urged as the number of viewers quickly thinned out. Continue reading
KERING SAID …
Kering said net profit fell 63.4 percent in the first six months of the year after the coronavirus pandemic.
Group revenues in the three months to June 30 fell 43.5 percent to 2.17 billion euros, representing a decline of 43.7 percent in comparable terms. This came on the heels of a 15.4 percent drop in the first quarter.
In percentage terms, the decline was greater than the one recorded by sector leader LVMH, which on Monday reported a 38 percent drop in second-quarter sales, but was below a consensus of analyst estimates, which called for a 48 percent fall.
Kering flagged an “encouraging” recovery as stores reopened, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, and saw a 72.4 percent jump in online sales in the second quarter. But organic sales at its cash cow brand Gucci fell 44.7 percent during the period, compared with a 23.2 percent drop in the prior three months. Continue reading
LVMH NET PROFIT DIVES 84 % IN CHINA
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton said net profit plummeted 84 percent in the first six months of the year, although it forecasts a gradual recovery in the second half, supported by a strong recovery in China during the second quarter.
Bernard Arnault, chairman and chief executive officer of LVMH, said the group had shown “exceptional resilience” during the health crisis. “While we have observed strong signs of an upturn in activity since June, we remain very vigilant for the rest of the year,” he said in a statement.
“Thanks to the strength of our brands and the responsiveness of our organization, we are confident that LVMH is in an excellent position to take advantage of the recovery, which we hope will be confirmed in the second half of the year, and to strengthen our lead in the global luxury market in 2020,” he added. Continue reading
MIU MIU CAMPAIGN BY GIGI
Gigi Hadid shares her backstage photos in Miu Miu Campaign. Proximity is now something of a nostalgic concept, given social-distancing protocols. It’s also the clever subtext of Miu Miu’s Fall campaign, which was shot before, during and after coronavirus lockdowns and has an intimate, DIY feel. Continue reading
OFF WHITE 2021
A ITALIAN FOR MARGIELA
Gianfranco Gianangeli joins the Paris-based fashion house Margiela after stints at Givenchy, Prada and Bottega Veneta
Gianangeli joins the Paris-based fashion house from his family-owned, namesake knitwear manufacturer in Perugia, Italy. Before that, he was global retail director at Givenchy and associate international director at Prada. He also worked for several years at Bottega Veneta in various merchandising positions and as that brand’s regional vice president in Japan.
Gianangeli joins a fast-growing brand powered by the creative vision of John Galliano, who recently documented the making of his wet-look Margiela couture dresses and diced-and-spliced tailoring in a mesmerizing 50-minute film with Nick Knight. Continue reading
MILAN FASHION WEEK 2020
Milan Digital Fashion Week Scores Highest Among European Fashion Capitals. The combined earned media value generated online by the London, Paris and Milan fashion weeks amounted to 10.7 million euros.
The first edition of Milan Digital Fashion Week closed on July 17 with a bang. Although observers have been pointing the online traffic generated by the London, Milan and Paris fashion weeks sent a reassuring message to the industry, forced to forgo physical events for the most part at least until September.
In particular the Milan showcase, which kicked off on July 14 and featured brands such as Prada, Ermenegildo Zegna and Gucci, among others, had the highest impact amassing 6.24 million euros in EMV, followed by Paris, with an EMV of 2.68 million euros and London Fashion Week that generated 1.81 million euros, or 17 percent of the total. The study took into consideration the July 9 to 13 period for Paris, excluding the previous days dedicated to haute couture collections. Continue reading
INFÉRE PARFUMS URBAN HERO
Inter Parfums Inc. posted an 18.7 percent net sales decline for the quarter ended March 31, the company said on Wednesday. While declines were broad, the Coach and Guess brands still grew.0 During the quarter, Coach and Guess both grew, helping to offset declines from most of the other brands. Coach launched Coach Dreams, which boosted brand sales by 35.9 percent.
Net sales were $144.8 million, down from $178.2 million in the prior-year period. European-based sales were down 20.6 percent, to $114.1 million, and U.S.-based sales were down 10.9 percent, to $30.7 million.
We have taken steps to minimize expenses and protect cash flow said Jean Madar, Inter Parfums chief executive officer in a statement. Our operating cost structure, of which variable costs accounts for over two-thirds, should enable us to minimize the impact of reduced sales until 2021 and moved related advertising and promotion expenses to 2021 as well. Continue reading
CREATIVE TALENT QUIT HERMES
A discreet, yet pivotal creative talent at Hermès International that some insiders describe as its;secret weapon is exiting the brand, bad bosses never keep good employees, Goodbye Hermés hello Kering.
Bali Barret, artistic director of the women’s product universe, has submitted her resignation and will exit the French house sometime this fall.
Practically unknown to the general public, and familiar to relatively few in the fashion world, Barret’s profile is somewhat akin to Alessandro Michele, who toiled behind the scenes for years at Gucci, while being responsible for products that generate the lion’s share of brand revenues.
Barret joined Hermès in 2003 as artistic director of its silk department, where she recruited street artists and other young creatives to bring fresh ideas to the category. She was promoted to her current position in 2009, giving her purview over all women’s departments, including leather goods, rtw, footwear, silks, jewelry, watches, beauty and fashion accessories.
According to insiders, said to be fiercely loyal to Barret’s leadership and design vision, she helped ;revolutionize; Hermès by modernizing its products and processes, bringing much-needed oxygen to a heritage brand with a conservative style streak. Continue reading
VIRTUAL FASHION BORN TO BE ALIVE
With safety measures in place, fashion weeks in these Asian fashion capitals will return to physical showcasing in October. Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing Fashion Weeks to Return.
As a few brands are beginning to do physical shows again at the end of the Spring 2021 men’s wear season, fashion weeks in Shanghai, Tokyo, Seoul and Beijing, where the coronavirus pandemic has been largely contained, are planning to press ahead with fully fledged physical fashion shows this October.
Return on Oct. 8, a spokesperson for the Shanghai Fashion Week Committee told. It hosted the world’s first online fashion week in partnership with Tmall amid lockdowns in March with mix results, but the livestreaming and selling component will be integrated into the physical fashion week to enable brands to have an omnichannel presence with both the trade audience and the public. Continue reading
RICHEMONT A CARTIER TO 1.99
Sales at Compagnie Financière Richemont nearly halved in the first quarter to 1.99 billion euros, despite double-digit growth in China fueled by jewelry and fashion. Sales fell 47 percent in the three months to June 30 due to store and workshop closures, anemic tourism and a lack of appetite for hard and soft luxury worldwide during the pandemic.
China was the outlier, growing 49 percent in the period. As a whole, the Asia-Pacific region was down 29 percent, with sales of 1.01 billion euros, and was Richemont’s largest market in the period.
In Europe, sales fell 59 percent to 436 million euros, with all markets impacted by public health protection measures, as well as by subdued local demand and a lack of international tourism. In the Americas region, sales were down 61 percent to 277 million euros, while in Japan they fell 64 percent to 112 million euros.
The Middle East and Africa region fared slightly better, with sales falling 38 percent, partly reflecting advanced purchases in anticipation of Saudi Arabia’s VAT increase on 1 July. Continue reading
ETRO MEN & WOMEN 2021
PRADA MINIMALISM
For her last collection as the solo Prada creative director starting from September she will be joined at the creative helm by Raf Simons Miuccia Prada let five artists interpret her spring effort through five short videos, offering different interpretations and takes on the men’s and women’s lineup.
The message, The pandemic, the economic crisis, the social tensions spreading around the globe can’t leave anyone indifferent, and cannot leave a sensitive designer like Prada unresponsive.
This is a moment that requires some seriousness, a moment to think and to reflect on things. What do we do, what is fashion for, what are we here for? What can fashion contribute, to a community?”
In keeping with her commitment, the designer embraced an unfussy yet highly sophisticated approach, minimal yet emotional. Combining function and aesthetics, she proposed the alpha and the omega of the brand’s fashion lexicon, exuding no nostalgia, only contemporary desirability.
Touches of Nineties minimalism emerged along with a subtle Sixties vibe, but Prada really focused only on what is relevant today, for boys and girls, men and women, living in our own world, with its joys and its limits. Continue reading
