Prada Revenues Rise Despite Struggles in Americas

People walk past a Prada store in Brussels, Belgium September 5, 2023. (Reuters)
People walk past a Prada store in Brussels, Belgium September 5, 2023. (Reuters)
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Prada Revenues Rise Despite Struggles in Americas

People walk past a Prada store in Brussels, Belgium September 5, 2023. (Reuters)
People walk past a Prada store in Brussels, Belgium September 5, 2023. (Reuters)

Italian fashion group Prada reported a 10% rise in third quarter revenues on Tuesday as a strong performance in Asia and Europe helped to compensate for weakness in the Americas.

The revenue growth came in just ahead of analysts' expectations of a 9.3% rise, according to a consensus cited by Jefferies.

For the first nine months of the year net revenues totaled 3.34 billion euros ($3.6 billion), up 17% at constant exchange rates, with the ready-to-wear category showing the fastest growth and the Miu Miu brand also expanding rapidly.

"We continue to see positive momentum in the business and strong excitement around our brands, positioning us well for Q4 and vis-à-vis our ambition to deliver solid, sustainable, and above-market growth in 2023," Chief Executive Andrea Guerra said.

Guerra told a subsequent conference call that he was also happy with the way October had gone, noting that November and December were more important months for business.

Prada's rivals in the luxury sector such as Kering, owner of the Gucci brand, have also been hit by slowing demand for fashion and accessories, particularly in the United States and Europe.

The Americas region was a weak spot for Prada where retail sales fell 1.3% over the nine months, offset by double digit growth in the Asia Pacific, Japan and European markets.

Guerra said Prada and Miu Miu had raised prices by 4-6% this year and that trend was likely to be similar in 2024.

He added the company was aware of tensions in major cities in recent weeks linked to the conflict between Hamas and Israel but that had not translated into a major impact on business.

"For sure, in some cities of the world, in the past weeks we have seen a little bit more tension driven by macro, geo-political happenings. But I would say that so far we have not seen basic differences," he said.

Prada, whose brands also include classic English shoemaker Church's, is listed on the Hong Kong stock market and released its figures after the market closed on Tuesday.



Shein to Open Pop-up Store in South Africa to Woo More Shoppers

A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)
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Shein to Open Pop-up Store in South Africa to Woo More Shoppers

A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)
A view of a Shein pop-up store at a mall in Singapore April 4, 2024. (Reuters)

Fast-fashion giant Shein, known for its $5 tops and $10 dresses, will open a pop-up store in Johannesburg, South Africa in August as the online retailer aims to expand its brand recognition in the country.

Shein, founded in China, and its rival Temu have aggressively expanded worldwide as online shopping has surged after the COVID pandemic. They have been accused of exploiting tax loopholes by exporting China-made products in small quantities to avoid higher duties.

Shein will open its pop-up store from Aug. 2-11 as an "exhibition space" for customers to try on trendy fashion and lifestyle products and order them online at a discount, the company said in its South African Instagram post on Tuesday.

Local influencers were tapped for a pre-opening marketing campaign.

Brick-and-mortar and online fashion retailers have urged South African regulators to impose a 45% import duty on all clothing item imports, no matter the price, to level the playing field. Shein, which is planning to go public in Britain, taps a network of largely China-based suppliers which take small initial orders and scale up based on demand.

A Shein spokesperson told Reuters the retailer is engaging with South African regulators to ensure its continued compliance with local laws.

"That said, such tax measures are not critical to the success of our business or the competitive prices we offer our consumers. We keep our prices affordable through our technology-based on-demand business model and flexible supply chain," the spokesperson added.