LVMH profit drops 17% in 2024, but Sephora and perfume grow

LVMH profit drops 17% in 2024, but Sephora and perfume grow

Luxury goods conglomerate LVMH, Europe’s largest company by market value, said on Tuesday, January 28, that its net profit fell 17 percent last year to 12.55 billion euros (USD 13 billion) as sales slipped two percent to 84.7 billion euros.

The company, best known for Louis Vuitton handbags, Dior fashion, Moet & Chandon champagne and Tiffany jewellery, blamed the slowdown partly on the end of the post-Covid boom.

“A year of consolidation”

“We had three years of euphoria in 2021, 2022, and 2023, and a year of consolidation in 2024,” the group’s financial director Jean-Jacques Guiony told journalists. “You have to accept this year for what it is.”

Guiony nonetheless pointed to “a slight improvement in the United States and Europe at the end of the year”.

Sales in the fourth quarter were little changed at 23.9 billion euros.

“In 2024, amid an uncertain environment, LVMH showed strong resilience,” chief executive Bernard Arnault said in a statement.

“While remaining highly vigilant with regard to cost management and our single-minded focus on the desirability of our designs, we enter 2025 with confidence.”

Sephora and beauty on the rise

Annual sales in the leather and fashion unit, which also includes Celine and Fendi, fell three percent to 41 billion euros.

Retailing, which includes international cosmetics chain Sephora, DFS and Paris department store Bon Marché, grew two percent to 18.3 billion euros, with a stable net profit from recurring operations.

Growth in this division is mostly due to Sephora, which delivered a double-digit growth in both revenue and profit. The fragrance and cosmetics retailer continued to expand its retail network, most notably in the United Kingdom and the United States, in particular through a collaboration with Kohl’s.

For their part, sales of the perfumes and cosmetics business also increased by 2% to 8.4 billion euros. Current operating profit is down by 6%.

Christian Dior delivered a very robust performance, with Sauvage consolidating its position as the world’s leading fragrance, while the new Miss Dior Parfum edition was a major success. Guerlain also saw positive momentum in fragrances, driven in particular by its L’Art & La Matière premium fragrance collection.

Revenue from watches and jewelry slipped three percent to 10.6 billion euros while wines and spirits dropped 11 percent to 5.9 billion euros.

The company will pay a dividend of 13 euros a share.

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