French luxury group Kering said first quarter revenues slid 14 percent to 3.9 billion euros ($4.4 billion) as sales at its flagship Gucci brand slumped further.
Kering has struggled to turn things around at Gucci, which accounts for half of group sales, but they fell 24 percent in the first three months of this year compared to the same period last year, when they were down a fifth.
Gucci sales fell by 23 percent last year overall, contributing to a sharp plunge in net profits to 1.13 billion euros for the group which also includes Yves Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta and Balenciaga.
“As we had anticipated, Kering faced a difficult start to the year,” chief executive Francois-Henri Pinault said in a statement.
“We are increasing our vigilance to weather the macroeconomic headwinds our industry faces, and I am convinced that we will come out stronger from the present situation,” he added.
Concerning US tariffs, “we consider that we have the capacity to protect our margins via price increases,” chief financial officer Armelle Poulou told journalists.
“Today there are still enormous uncertainties so we’re still working on that,” she added.
Even if punitive tariffs don’t hit luxury goods directly, a trade war would likely crimp consumer sentiment.
The sales downturn in the Asia-Pacific region, a key area for the luxury sector, was particularly sharp at 25 percent.
Pinault expressed confidence earlier this year that Kering would turn around Gucci, and has shaken up the top leadership.
In March it appointed Demna Gvasalia from its Balenciaga brand as chief designer at Kering, to replace Sabato de Sarno, who lasted only two years in the job.
The appointment failed to convince markets, with Kering’s share price falling 11 percent the following day.
The company’s stock nearly hit 800 euros per share in 2021 but closed at 174.94 euros Wednesday.
