Kering, the French luxury group that owns Gucci, Bottega Veneta and Saint Laurent, closed 2022 with a 14% increase in net profit to 3.6 billion. “All of our brands achieved record sales and contributed to the increase in operating profit. But these performances are not all up to our ambitions,” said CEO François-Henry Pinault.
Turnover at +15%: one third of sales in Asia-Pacific
In 2022, Kering’s turnover rose by 15% to 20.3 billion, with positive performances in all sales channels: retail (which absorbs 78% of sales) recorded a +10% and wholesale recorded a +6% while the channel with the highest growth has been confirmed as e-commerce which for now accounts for 15% of turnover. The distribution of sales by geographical area in 2022 sees Asia Pacific in the lead with a third (33%) of the value, followed by North America and Western Europe (each absorbing a share equal to 27%), Rest of the World (7% ) and Japan (6%).
Gucci weighs on the group’s fourth quarter
In the fourth quarter of 2022, however, the Kering group recorded revenues of 5.3 billion, down 2% (-7% at comparable exchange rates): the performance was penalized by the Gucci brand whose sales decreased by 11% in the quarter.
Gucci, the group’s leading brand in terms of revenues, exceeded 10 billion lire for the first time ( 10.5 billion), up 8% at current rates and 1% at comparable rates. Sales are concentrated for a significant share (36%) in the Asia Pacific area, followed by North America (29%). In the fourth quarter, however, sales stood at 2.733 billion euros (-14% at current rates; -11% at comparable rates) and just between the end of last year and the beginning of 2023 a significant change took place to the creative direction: after the farewell of Alessandro Michele, Sabato De Sarno was appointed. Chief Financial Officer Jean-Marc Duplaix said he was “very confident for Gucci in 2023 and in the long term”.
Undisputed best performer in 2022 was Saint Laurent: the company led by the Italian Francesca Bellettini, CEO since 2013, achieved 3.3 billion in turnover (+31%), concentrated more in Europe and North America than in Asia. In the fourth quarter, Saint Laurent’s revenues nonetheless achieved double-digit growth: +10% to 903 million euros.