Asia outperforms for Groupe L’Occitane as pandemic decimates European sales

Strong sales across Asia and rapid online growth helped beauty-products retailer Groupe L’Occitane contain its sales decline during the June quarter to a comparatively respectable 22 percent.

The Hong Kong-listed company singled out China, South Korea, and Taiwan as its strongest-performing markets, which “bounced back rapidly” after lockdowns, recording year-on-year sales growth of 24.9 percent, 27.4 percent, and 11.5 percent respectively.

That helped compensate for huge reductions in turnover in Japan, Europe, and the Americas which were impacted by store closures and lockdowns resulting from the pandemic.

Online sales – including the group’s own sites, marketplaces, and digital direct-selling – soared by 95.8 percent and accounted for 52.6 percent of the group’s total sales of €274.2 million for the quarter.

Groupe L’Occitane chairman Reinold Geiger said all of the company’s brands, except for LimeLife, were heavily impacted by travel bans and lockdowns, posting sales decreases ranging from 25 percent to 35 percent.

“LimeLife, however, posted strong growth of 51.6 percent at constant exchange rates, thanks to its resilient online-only business model, as well as successful new product launches, a flash sale and initiatives to recruit beauty guides.”

The company permanently closed 52 stores during the quarter, mainly due to the closure of underperforming kiosks run by its Brazilian subsidiary L’Occitane au Brésil.