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PARIS – Record sales in France and steady growth in Europe helped to fuel SMCP’s an uptick in organic sales in the first quarter, which rose 6.7 percent year-over-year.
The Sandro, Maje, Claudie Pierlot and Fursac parent company said revenues totaled 305 million euros in the three months ended March 31, up 7.6 percent at constant exchange rates, driven by like-for-like and full-price sales.
The sales numbers come as the group’s bondholders, including BlackRock and Carlyle, are awaiting bids for their 37 percent stake in the company, which is valued at around 227 million euros. The company declined to comment on the bidding process.
The company’s stocks dipped 4.3 percent at opening, though they slightly recovered in mid-morning trading to 8.12 euros a share.
SMCP’s home country of France proved to be a strong market this quarter, with organic sales up 13.1 percent to 106 million euros, driven by the return of tourism and despite much of the country being gripped by political crisis and ongoing strikes in the first three months of the year.
“This double-digit growth is even more remarkable given…the adverse social environment,” the company said in a statement.
“We are particularly pleased with the strong momentum in France, the dynamism in Europe, the return to growth in Asia and the resilience of our sales in America after an excellent 2022,” said chief executive officer Isabelle Guichot.
The company closed the remaining two points of sale in France for its defunct multi-brand Suite 341 concept, which once numbered 40 corners mostly in department stores, as it focuses on strengthening the individual brand identities in the accessible luxury space.
Guichot confirmed the company’s full-year guidance despite wariness about geopolitical headwinds. “We remain vigilant regarding the evolution of the macro-economic, social, and geopolitical context but are confident that the positive momentum will continue in the coming quarters and thus confirm our annual targets,” she said.
After a slow start to the year, China’s gradual reopening saw organic sales steadily climb in Asia-Pacific in March, ending up 2.7 percent year-over-year to 71 million euros.
The company boosted full-price sales in China as the situation normalized in the country following the ending of its zero-COVID strategy in December.
Five new stores opened in Mainland China and Singapore, while Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia and Macau were also strong points.
Sales dropped 2.5 percent in North America, which the company categorized as “stabilizing” after sales were up 16 percent in the 2022 fiscal year.
SMCP said the U.S. remained “resilient,” while it pinned the drop in the region on the lack of tourists in Canada “where the normalization of traffic is slower due to the low level of tourism from Asia and weak local demand.”
Organic sales across Europe and the Middle East were up 7 percent year-over-year to 89 million euros, particularly in Italy, Spain and the United Arab Emirates and the overall growth in online sales.
The company fully closed down its Russian business and 40 stores there, though it had not been delivering new product to the country since the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
On a brand basis, Sandro’s organic sales were up 7.8 percent, while organic sales at Maje were relatively flat at 0.4 percent.
Organic sales at Claudie Pierlot and men’s label Fursac, grouped together as “other brands,” showed the biggest growth at 21.7 percent.
SMCP said it is launching a sustainability committee to monitor its ESG commitments. It noted that the company has accelerated its traceability plan.
It partnered with French reporting company Fairly Made in February 2022 to implement full traceability of each product across its four brands as part of its strategic plan to achieve “ethical sourcing” in its supply chain by 2025.
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