Asia Pacific sales break 100 million euros into Ferragamo largest market

Although the Asia-Pacific region only showed a single-digit growth of 6.2% during the quarter, which represented a significant slowdown compared to 27% in the same period of last year, it managed to sit firmly on the group's primary market position with sales of 102 million euros. This quarter saw the fastest increase in North America, with sales increasing by 16.8% year-on-year from 56.84 million euros to 62.97 million euros.

It is understood that China's retail channel is the largest contributor in the region, with revenue growth of 20%. “China is still growing, but the way has changed. Second- and third-tier cities are experiencing strong growth due to local consumption and consumer spending from other cities in the country. Hong Kong, Macau and Australia are performing well in China, while South Korea and Singapore are unstable.” Chief Executive Officer Officer Michele Norsa said in a conference call.

According to financial information, net profit for all products including glasses and wristwatches produced by licensed manufacturers this quarter reached 26.8 million euros, a year-on-year increase of 57%. The net profit excluding the licensed products was 24 million euros, a sharp increase of 103% over the same period of last year. According to the analysis, this is inseparable from last year's continuous repurchasing of distribution agency rights in Greater China, South Korea and Southeast Asia.

In addition, the fastest growing product line was leather goods and perfumes, which grew by 14.4% and 14.6%, respectively, accounting for 32.1% and 8.2% of all product sales. The footwear products that have attracted much attention have risen by 8.2% compared to the same period of last year to EUR 119 million, accounting for 42.4% of total sales, which is a decrease of 0.4% compared with last year. However, the performance of Ferragamo garments was not optimistic. Sales fell 1.6% year-on-year, and its share of total sales fell from 9.9% last year to 8.7%.

On the sales channel, the growth of tourism retail channels was the strongest, up 25.9% year-on-year. This has been affected by the overall European economic recession and the slowing down of China's economic development. Italian footwear manufacturers including Tod's and Salvatore Ferragamo have turned their attention to tourists' purchasing power in order to offset the declining sales in the European market.

The retail and wholesale channels increased by 7.1% and 10.9% respectively. As of March 31, 2013, Salvatore Ferragamo products are sold in 600 colored sales outlets worldwide, of which 339 are directly-operated stores, including 261 stores in other channels, including airport duty-free shops and agents. The sales points are located in the downtown area and the bustling tourist attractions.