Cartier’s parent company Richemont has reported $17.13 billion in sales for the six months to September, posting a 6 per cent year-on-year growth led by Asia Pacific.
The luxury group said the slow pace of growth was influenced by the “uncertain macroeconomic and geopolitical environments”. Meanwhile, the company recorded an operating loss of $1.18 billion from discontinued operations primarily resulting from an $840 million non-cash write-down of Yoox Net-a-Porter net assets.
Sales in Asia Pacific were up 14 per cent following the opening of China, Jewellery Maisons and the retail channel which, together with the online retail channel, contributed 74 per cent of group sales, according to the company.
“Growth eased in the second quarter as inflationary pressure, slowing economic growth and geopolitical tensions began to affect customer sentiment, compounded by strong comparatives,” said Johann Rupert, chairman at Richemont.
“Consequently, we have seen a broad-based normalisation of market growth expectations across the industry. The positive news is that a soft-landing scenario seems to be prevailing in major economies with still higher growth expected from China, which should benefit from stimulus measures.”
Richemont acquired a controlling stake in Italian shoemaking brand Gianvito Rossi in July. The group sold a controlling stake in Yoox Net-a-Porter to Farfetch and investment firm Symphony Global last year.
