Kering’s Jewelry Brands Persevere as Q1 Sales Sink 14%
Boucheron and Pomellato performed well in an otherwise bleak quarter for Kering amid struggles at Gucci.

The luxury titan reported first-quarter revenue of €3.88 billion ($4.42 billion), down 14 percent year-over-year.
“As we had anticipated, Kering faced a difficult start to the year,” CEO François-Henri Pinault said.
“We are increasing our vigilance to weather the macroeconomic headwinds our industry faces, and I am convinced that we will come out stronger from the present situation.”
Kering noted a gradual slowdown in retail activity at the start of the year, adding that the uncertain macro environment is weighing on consumer confidence.
A poor performance by Gucci weighed heavily on its balance sheet.
Gucci’s quarterly sales sank 24 percent (25 percent on a comparable basis).
Revenue from Gucci’s directly operated store network was down 25 percent, due in part to low store traffic, while its wholesale revenue sank 33 percent.
Gucci also named a new artistic director to replace Sabato De Sarno, who left the brand earlier this year.
The brand appointed Demna Gvasalia, better known as Demna, to the role. He is the former creative director of fellow Kering-owned brand Balenciaga.
The company’s jewelry brands, which include Boucheron and Pomellato, fall into its “other houses” division, alongside Alexander McQueen and Balenciaga.
For the first quarter, revenue in the division totaled €733 million ($835 million), down 11 percent year-over-year.
On a comparable basis, sales in the stores Kering owns and operates were down 9 percent in the quarter.
The division’s wholesale revenue fell 17 percent.
While the division struggled overall, sales grew for Kering’s jewelry brands in Q1.
“The group’s jewelry houses pursued their development,” Kering said. “Boucheron achieved a robust performance over a high comparison base, Pomellato had an excellent quarter, driven in particular by new pieces in its ‘Nudo’ line, and Qeelin achieved outstanding growth.”
Boucheron recently opened its first U.S. store in New York City and then opened another in Las Vegas.
Kering closed 25 stores on a net basis in Q1, bringing its directly operated store count to 1,788.
Looking at Kering’s overall performance by channel, first-quarter sales from its directly operated retail network, including e-commerce, fell 16 percent on a comparable basis.
Wholesale revenue (excluding the eyewear, beauty, and “royalties and other” divisions) was down 23 percent on a comparable basis in the quarter as Kering continued to make its distribution more exclusive.
By region, Kering noted weakening year-over-year sales in North America (down 13 percent), Western Europe (down 13 percent), and Japan (down 11 percent) while quarterly sales in the Asia-Pacific region (down 25 percent) were in line with last year’s fourth quarter.
North America accounted for 23 percent of Kering’s Q1 sales, up 1 percent from last year, making it the company’s third-largest market, with Asia Pacific (31 percent) in the No. 1 spot followed by Western Europe (28 percent).
The company did not provide fiscal guidance for the year ahead.
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