Latest news with #WWDPrada
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Prada Group Gains 13% in Q1 as Miu Miu Surges
MILAN — The difficult current scenario did not thwart Prada Group's sales growth in the first three months of the year. In the period ended March 31, revenues rose 13 percent to 1.34 billion euros, compared with 1.19 billion euros in the first quarter last year. A 60 percent jump in Miu Miu sales, gains across all the group's markets and a strong retail performance contributed to the increase. More from WWD Prada Outlines Strategic Expansion Plans as Q1 Sales Gain 13% Luxury Grapples With Disillusionment and Fragile Recovery in China Princess Charlene of Monaco in Prada, Queen Rania of Jordan in Alaïa and More Royals in Somber Attire for Pope Francis' Funeral Ceremony in Vatican City 'We are pleased with another quarter of solid performance. In an increasingly turbulent and uncertain landscape, we continued to execute with confidence and discipline, leveraging creativity and the strength of our organization,' said Patrizio Bertelli, Prada Group chairman and executive director. 'The current environment requires us to be agile and flexible; at the same time, we believe it is essential to continue to invest with a long-term mindset, preserving and developing craftsmanship and know-how, supporting our partners and strengthening our infrastructure.' Retail sales rose 13 percent to 1.21 billion euros, driven by like-for-like, full-price sales. Wholesale revenues were up 7 percent to 96 million euros and royalties grew 15 percent to 29 million euros. UPDATED: Prada's retail sales remained stable, 'a resilient performance against the highest quarterly comps of 2024,' the company said in a release issued on Wednesday. Miu Miu sales climbed 60 percent at constant exchange rates, showing strength across categories and regions. 'The group had a positive start to the year. Prada showed strong resilience, against the most challenging quarterly comparison of 2024; the comps will ease slightly in the second half of the year but we expect the backdrop to remain complex,' said Andrea Guerra, group chief executive officer. 'Notwithstanding the headwinds, Miu Miu confirmed a remarkable growth trajectory. Looking ahead, our strategy remains centered on our brands, their relevance, creativity and marked sensibility in reading the spirit of the time. Sharp execution will be key in this environment and to continue to deliver on our ambition of solid, sustainable and above-market growth.' The group said Prada's resilience lay in 'a well-balanced product category mix,' led by 'solid traction' of apparel and the 'continuous enrichment' of leather goods. It cited the opening in the quarter of Prada's first standalone dining space in Asia at Rong Zhai, its restored historical mansion and art space in downtown Shanghai, conceived by renowned arthouse director Wong Kar Wai, and the opening of Prada Caffè in Singapore. Prada also unveiled a menswear store on New York's Fifth Avenue. At Miu Miu, leather goods remained the fastest-growing category, supported by the spring 2025 campaign celebrating the brand's signature Matelassé line. Among the highlights of the quarter, the group mentioned the launch of Miu Miu Gymnasium sport-inspired pop-ups and the unveiling of the Miu Miu Custom Studio project. In February, Silvia Onofri joined Miu Miu from Napapijri, under the VF Corp. umbrella, as its new chief executive officer. Group sales in Asia-Pacific increased 10 percent to 438 million euros, despite a challenging comparison base and broadly unchanged market conditions in the region. Europe was up 13 percent to 334 million euros, lifted by both domestic and tourist spending. Sales in the Americas rose 11 percent to 201 million euros, despite increased volatility during the period, and boosted by local demand. Japan continued to grow and sales in the region were up 19 percent to 172 million euros, although the increase showed progressive moderation and is expected to continue. The Middle East ended the quarter as the best-performing region, with retail sales up 31 percent to 70 million euros. On April 10, the group said it is acquiring Versace from Capri Holdings for 1.25 billion euros, with the closing expected in the second half of 2025 upon regulatory approvals. Best of WWD Harvey Nichols Sees Sales Dip, Losses Widen in Year Marred by Closures Nike Logs $1.3 Billion Profit, But Supply Chain Issues Persist Zegna Shares Start Trading on New York Stock Exchange
Yahoo
03-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Wall Street Crashes on Trump Tariffs That Could ‘Hobble' the Apparel Industry
President Donald Trump's 'Liberation Day' tariffs looked very little like freedom on Wall Street on Thursday, where shocks are disliked and uncertainty is hated. Even though Trump telegraphed the move well ahead of time, investors didn't think he would really do it. More from WWD Prada Nearing Deal for Versace and Jimmy Choo Just as the Market Plunges Jellybean Looks to Digital Passports to Create New Connections for Fashion Brands CEO Bracken Darrell Brings VF Corp.'s Reinvention Back to Wall Street The president has extolled the virtues of tariffs, threatened to impose them and actually hit some friends and foes with higher duties earlier this year, occasionally walking them back. But the sweeping broadside against globalism that Trump unfurled on Wednesday surprised almost everyone. The liberation — by Trump's way of thinking of the U.S. economy — included a new 20 percent tariff on goods from the European Union, a 34 percent tariff on China and a 46 percent levy on Vietnam, all on top of existing duties. If that tariff regime sticks, it will break or completely reinvent the global supply chain sooner rather than later. Investors weren't keen to wait around and see how serious Trump is or how long it will take for the import-dependent retail and fashion companies to reorient. The S&P 500 fell 4.8 percent to 5,396.52 — the worst drop in the market since COVID-19 sent the world home. The list of fashion and retail companies getting hit much harder — with declines more than 20 percent — was top, if at times struggling, players, including: VF Corp., down 28.7 percent to $11.68. Capri Holdings, down 23.6 percent to $14.99. Kohls Corp, down 22.8 percent to $6.64. Victoria's Secret & Co., down 22.6 percent to $14.87. Gap Inc., down 20.3 percent to $17.84. In beauty, The Estée Lauder Cos. was down 15.3 percent to $58.19, while Coty Inc., dropped 7.8 percent to $5.21 and Ulta Beauty Inc. just beat the market, falling 3.9 percent to $367.76. The day's strongest fashion player was the offpricer Ross Stores Inc., which was down just 0.9 percent to $131.21. Ross, which caters to the value crowd and can soak up inventory directly from other retailers, is a stock that plays well when the economy is in trouble. Dylan Carden, an analyst at William Blair, said in a research note that there would be 'few places to hide' if the duty regime held. 'The April 2 tariffs seem purpose-built to hobble the apparel industry, with the highest tariffs targeting regions that in aggregate are the source of 50 percent of apparel imports,' Carden said. The analyst said merchandise costs would likely increase by 30 percent overall and that 'companies will have to eat a fair share' of that hike. While one of the intents of the tariffs is to rebuild the American manufacturing sector, Carden sees that as 'a dim hope.' 'The skilled labor and infrastructure necessary for such a move has not existed in the U.S. at any meaningful scale since the 1980s and would take time and capital that few are likely inclined or able to spend,' he said. 'We would look for some potential carve outs in the days to come. The bigger hope would be that larger trading partners reliant on the U.S. start lowering their own tariffs to allow the U.S. some headline wins to lower theirs.' But the analyst also said that 'such a scenario is near impossible to game out from the current vantage.' So, who knows? In the meantime, fashion veterans are bracing themselves. Mickey Drexler, former chief executive officer of Gap Inc., and now CEO of Alex Mill, said the tariffs would fuel apparel inflation that 'will be beyond the acceptable inflation rate if the companies are to maintain earnings or growth or value.' 'And there are three or four companies I think that might not survive this,' Drexler said. 'I won't mention them, but they're very successful companies.' That leaves a lot hanging on what comes next as the geopolitics of an economic reset with the world take hold. 'President Trump, he's too smart,' Drexler said. 'There's an end game here that he's playing.' There are others hoping this is the end game. Kim Glas, president and CEO of The National Council of Textile Organizations, thanked Trump on behalf of the industry's 471,00 workers. 'We are particularly pleased with the administration's decision to preserve duty-free trade for imports from Mexico and Canada that are compliant with the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement rules of origin,' Glas said. 'The U.S. textile industry ships $12.3 billion, or 53 percent, of its total global textile exports to Mexico and Canada and those component materials often come back as finished products to the United States under the USMCA. It is by far the largest export region for American textile producers, representing $20 billion in two-way trade that spurs enormous textile investment and employment in the United States.' Best of WWD Harvey Nichols Sees Sales Dip, Losses Widen in Year Marred by Closures Nike Logs $1.3 Billion Profit, But Supply Chain Issues Persist Zegna Shares Start Trading on New York Stock Exchange
