Last week, luxury houses including Hermès, Kering and Prada Group published their third-quarter numbers. Results varied widely, but every release reached for the same word: Challenging.

Zegna Group’s sales grew 8.2 per cent on an organic basis in the three months to 30 September. Hermès grew 4.3 per cent at constant exchange rates, while Prada Group posted 1 per cent organic growth after stripping out the newly consolidated Versace. Kering slipped 1 per cent on a comparable basis, pulled down by a 6 per cent fall at Gucci.

“Traffic remained the main constraint, while conversion, average price and average ticket remained supportive across most Houses,” Kering said. In other words, fewer people are walking into luxury stores, but those who do are still buying and spending more. 

Kering’s third-quarter revenue was €3.345 billion. Sales through its directly operated stores, including e-commerce, fell 3 per cent. Gucci, which still generates nearly 39 per cent of group revenue, recorded €1.29 billion, down 6 per cent on a comparable basis. Its own stores fell 9 per cent. The company attributed the decline to lower traffic in Asia Pacific, particularly in Mainland China, and in Japan.

“Third-quarter revenue reflects the phasing we anticipated, in a softer macroeconomic environment,” said Kering CEO Luca de Meo. “The recovery of Gucci remains our defining priority. We are steadily strengthening desirability and advancing our product development at pace.”

With fewer shoppers coming through the door, Kering is closing stores faster than planned. It made 105 net closures in the first nine months (128 closures against 23 openings), beating its full-year target of 100 early, and now expects at least 125 this year, after 75 last year.

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