LVMH Jewelry Sales Slip Amid Flagging China Demand

LVMH’s jewelry and watch sales fell in the third quarter as luxury demand in China slowed and Japan saw lower growth due to a strong yen. 

“Watch and jewelry [goods] are fairly resilient to macroeconomic inflection due to their exposure to wealthy consumers, but are sensitive to significant inflections in consumer confidence leading to lower demand, especially from the aspirational customer,” deputy chief financial officer Cécile Cabanis said on an earnings call transcribed by Seeking Alpha. 

Revenue from the category decreased 5% year on year to EUR 2.39 billion ($2.6 billion) for the three months that ended September 30, LVMH reported last week. Sales of jewelry and watches for the first nine months of the year also slipped 5% to EUR 7.54 billion ($8.21 billion). 

“In the first half of the year, the watches and jewelry business in China was not so good already,” explained chief financial officer Jean-Jacques Guiony on the call. “It was down some…strong double digit already.” The third quarter was “quite comparable” he noted. 

During the period, Tiffany & Co. introduced a new collection, Tiffany Titan by Pharrell Williams, which was “exceptionally well received.” Bulgari launched a new campaign starring celebrities Zendaya and Anne Hathaway to celebrate its 140th anniversary, and debuted new collections, while Chaumet awarded the medals for the Paris 2024 Olympic and Paralympic Games. 

Group revenue for the third quarter decreased 4% to EUR 19.08 billion ($20.78 billion), dropping 2% to EUR 60.75 billion ($66.18 billion) for the nine months to September 30.

Image: A Bulgari ring. (Shutterstock)