Kering revenue jumps 31% on strong luxury sales

Shoppers’ appetite for luxury goods is showing no signs of waning, pushing French luxury goods group Kering — parent of Gucci, Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent — to another quarter of strong revenue growth.

The company on Tuesday said that overall revenue for the first quarter of 2017 was up 31.2 per cent on a reported basis, to €3.57bn, lifted by a 34 per cent jump in sales from luxury activities.

Gucci led the way, posting record revenue growth of 51.4 per cent to €1.35bn for the quarter, the company reported. The growth was driven by double-digit increases across its product categories, including “ever-increasing demand for ready-to-wear and shoes”, as well as “excellent momentum” in leather goods, according to Kering.

Yves St Laurent was not far behind its sister brand, with revenue growing 35.4 per cent during the quarter thanks in part to the warm reception shoppers have given to the brand’s summer collection designed by Anthony Vaccarello, the Belgian designer tapped last year to serve as its creative director to replace Hedi Slimane.

It’s yet another strong quarterly performance from the company. Luca Solca, head of luxury goods at Exane BNP Paribas, called it a “phenomenal beat” and said that it should push the company’s shares higher. Kering shares were up 1.2 per cent on Tuesday evening to €259.15.