LVMH posts ‘record’ annual results

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton, a major luxury goods group, has released its 2016 annual results, recording a revenue of EUR 37.6bn in 2016.

According to the company’s report, this represents an increase of 5% over the previous, with organic revenue growth at 6%.

The company, which owns brands such as Sephora, Christian Dior, Benefit, Guerlain and Kat Von D, notes that the results represent record revenue and profit from recurring operations, with growth across the US, Europe and Asia.

Bernard Arnault, Chairman and CEO of LVMH, said: “LVMH achieved an excellent performance in 2016 within a context of geopolitical and economic instability.”

Perfumes and cosmetics

LVMH owns various beauty and fragrance brands, and notes that organic revenue growth for this division came in at 8%, and that on a reported basis, revenue growth was 6%. Profit from recurring operations increased by 5%.

The company picks out the inauguration of a new site dedicated to perfume creation for Louis Vuitton and Christian Dior in France as one key highlight from the division this year.

It notes that Christian Dior grow its market share in all regions, and Guerlain successfully launched a new makeup collection.

Benefit was picked out for its strong growth driven by the success of its new eyebrow-focussed collection, and Make Up For Ever and Kat Von D are both described as having ‘performed well’.

Innovation boosting growth

Arnault said in a statement on the release of the results that innovation is a major driver fuelling the group’s growth.

“Continued innovation, entrepreneurial spirit and the quest for excellence: all Maisons [group divisions] continue to assert these core values while maintaining rigorous execution of their strategies on the ground,” he said.  

“In an environment which remains uncertain, we can count on the appeal of our brands and the agility of our teams to strengthen, once again in 2017, our leadership in the universe of high quality products.”