Hermes sales rebound

Hermes sales rebounded globally in the first quarter of this year, exceeding analysts expectations.

But the best news seems to be from Hong Kong where the French luxury goods label reported sales had “stabilised” after last year’s serious decline.  Sales fell in Macau, Hermes said, without providing further details.

In the broader picture, the company saw respite in its home market after shoppers began to return to stores following the nervousness fuelled by the terror attacks late last year.

Hermes sales for the quarter rose 6.2 per cent on a constant currency basis, to reach 1.19 billion euros (US$1.35 billion)

CEO Axel Dumas said during an earnings call that the fallout from the terror attacks – in both Brussels and Paris – was still hurting luxury goods retailers. Footfall had returned to normal in Milan and London, but remained down in Paris, causing a 9.2 per cent drop in sales of ties and silk scarves in the quarter.

Leather goods was the only category to show a rise in sales – a healthy 15 per cent.

“There’s a lot of volatility,” Dumas said. “We have to adapt to circumstance.”