Watches of Switzerland Slashes Guidance
The company pointed to a “volatile” holiday season and a challenging macroeconomic environment.
The retailer said it had a positive start to the third quarter of its fiscal year, which includes the months of November and December, but had “a volatile trading performance” before Christmas and beyond.
The company said it expects the challenging conditions to continue throughout the end of its fiscal year.
Watches of Switzerland’s full-year revenue is now expected to range between £1.53 billion to £1.55 billion ($1.94 billion to $1.97 billion), down from its prior guidance of £1.65 billion to £1.7 billion ($2.1 billion to $2.16 billion).
Constant currency revenue growth is forecast at 2 to 3 percent, down from 8 to 11 percent.
“The festive period was particularly volatile this year for the luxury sector, with consumers allocating spend to other categories such as fashion, beauty, hospitality and travel,” said CEO Brian Duffy.
“Whilst we are disappointed with this trend, we are encouraged by our market share gains in both the U.S. and U.K.”
In the United States, Watches of Switzerland’s sales continued to grow by double digits, though the U.K. market was “more challenged.”
Demand is still strong for its key brands, the company said, noting increases in its “Registration of Interest” lists, though it had to significantly mark down prices of its non-branded jewelry in order to move merchandise.
Watches of Switzerland will announce its third-quarter results on Feb. 8.
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