Shares in luxury retail group Kering surged by more than six per cent thanks to strong third-quarter sales growth which was bolstered yet again by its Gucci arm.
Overall revenue at the company – which also operates Yves Saint Laurent, Alexander McQueen and Bottega Venetta – increased 27.6 per cent at €3.4 billion (£2.99 billion), for the three month period ending September 30.
This beat analyst expectations of around €3.26 billion (£2.86 billion), according to FactSet.
Group like-for-like sales in Kering’s directly-operated stores grew 27.6 per cent, driven by double-digit increases across all regions, while group online sales skyrocketed by more than 80 per cent.
On its own, Gucci sales surged 35.1 per cent to €2.1 billion (£1.85 billion), a lower rate than in previous quarters but still beating expectations thanks to no signs of slowdown from Chinese spenders.
However, Bottega Veneta revenue was down 7.8 per cent to €259 million (£228 million), which Kering attributed to an ongoing transition since it recently hired new creative director Daniel Lee.
Nonetheless, the results prompted shares in Kering to rise 6.2 per cent this morning, to €374.90.
“We are extraordinarily proud of the remarkable performances Kering delivers quarter after quarter,” chief executive François-Henri Pinault said.
“Our growth, whose pace is unprecedented in the luxury sector, is sound, well balanced and sustained across all regions and distribution channels.
“The talent of each of our houses at creating strong emotional ties with its customers, conceiving a bold, generous creative universe, and reinventing its codes, is at the root of Kering’s success.
“Beyond short-term developments, we know that the [sector] growth of the luxury market, but particularly our solid fundamentals and the discipline with which we implement our strategy, will continue to support our operating and financial outperformance.”
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