China has become one of the few bright spots for luxury goods sellers in recent weeks as it slowly emerges from its Covid-19 lockdown, even as the world’s top merchants continue to suffer from continued closures in their other major markets, reported Caixin.
As the first place to experience Covid-19, China’s luxury goods market suffered one of the biggest declines in the first quarter as the nation moved aggressively to close stores and encouraged people to stay home starting in late January. But as the outbreak has come under control, many traditional stores where brands like Louis Vuitton and Gucci products are sold have now reopened.
Some of the world’s top luxury goods makers said they were seeing positive signs coming from China, as shoppers are once again free to resume store-based buying after spending several months mostly confined to their homes. Many of the companies gave the cautiously optimistic view in their first-quarter earnings announced earlier this month, which were far more downbeat.
LVMH Moet Hennessy has already started to see some recovery in Asia, with China stores recently recording a nearly 50% rise in year-on-year sales, the company’s Chief Financial Officer Jean-Jacques Guiony told analysts on April 16. Hermes International Societe sounded a similar note, saying its China stores had returned to a sales growth track. And Kering SA, whose brands include Gucci, said its brand stores in China, South Korea and Macau had all reopened as of the end of March.