Armani sets out resilient sales report
ITALIAN fashion house Giorgio Armani yesterday said it had displayed “resilience” to battle through the global economic crisis, as it announced falls in its sales and profits.
The company said consolidated revenues shrank by six per cent to €1.52bn (£1.27bn), down from sales of €1.62bn last year. And the company saw its operating profit plunge by 28 per cent to €218m from €303m.
The results are the first since the management structure of the company, owned entirely by the 76-year-old designer, was reorganised last autumn following a deterioration in his health.
Armani had delegated power by promoting a trio of executives into the upper echelons of the company hierarchy. Livio Proli, who was appointed general manager, and John Hooks, who became deputy chairman, both entered the Board, and Gianni Gerbotto took over the company’s financial management.
But while Armani felt the effect of purses tightening in Europe and the US, the company saw considerable growth in the Far East. Sales in the Chinese market grew by 32 per cent.
Armani, who unveiled his haute couture collection in Paris last week, said it had been a tough year throughout the industry but its solid financial position would give it momentum going forward.