While Prada’s eponymous flagship Maison walked in slow motion between July and September 2024, its little sister Miu Miu continued to sparkle.
So far, so good…or almost so for Prada.
While the French giants Kering and, to a lesser extent, LVMH and Italy’s Moncler have been hanging on by their fingernails in the third quarter of 2024, some luxury goods players are holding up much better.
Along with Hermès, the transalpine Prada group is one of the lucky ones.
The owner of the eponymous Prada House and its little sister Miu Miu posted third-quarter 2024 growth of 17.7% at constant exchange rates. This performance is mainly due to double-digit growth in retail sales in Asia and Europe, but also to a twofold increase in sales of Miu Miu…
Positive trajectory
“We progressed throughout the year with another quarter of high-quality, like-for-like growth, sustaining ourpositive trajectory in terms of both sales and margins,” said Andrea Guerra, Prada’s CEO, who arrived at the helm in early 2023, in a statement.
In the first ninemonths of the year, group sales rose by 18% at constant exchange rates to 3.8 billion euros.
In its press release, the group refers to Prada’s performance over the same period as “outperforming the market, with retail sales up 4%” and “ excellent growth” for Miu Miu, with retail sales up 97%”!
Double-digit growth in Asia-Pacific
Another cause for rejoicing was double-digit growth (according to as yet unaudited data) at constant exchange rates in Asia-Pacific (+12%), Europe (+18%), Japan (+53%) and the Middle East (+24%), while the Americas saw a “slight sequential improvement” (+8%).
Europe was thus “underpinned by household and tourist spending, with a steady performance in the third quarter”, while Japan “enjoyed exceptional growth throughout the period (+53%), thanks to solid local consumption and strong tourist flows, with the third quarter continuing to show high growth, albeit at a slower pace than the previous quarter”.
Finally, in Asia-Pacific, “overall trends were in line in the third quarter, despite more difficult market conditions in the region”.
China more complicated
During a conference call, Andrea Guerra admitted, however, that “ China is more complicated today” and that “the situation will not necessarily improve in the near future”.
Affected by the slowdown in this market, retail sales (at constant exchange rates) for Prada, the flagship brand, rose by just 1.7% in the third quarter, a slowdown on the previous quarter.
In contrast, sales growth at Miu Miu (+105%) exceeded the group’s expectations, Prada’s CEO also said. The brand now contributes a quarter of the Group’s total retail sales.
Proof of the continuing success of Prada’s little sister: in the latest Lyst quarterly ranking, identifying the 20 most popular luxury brands on the web, Miu Miu took over first place from Loewe. Searches for the brand jumped 30%.
A lasting Miu Miu miracle?
It remains to be seen whether the Miu Miu miracle will continue after the departurefor Christian Dior Couture last September of Benedetta Petruzzo, who had been CEO of Miu Miu for almost four years. The name of her successor should be announced within one to three months. Styling remains in the hands of the talented Miuccia Prada.
Patrizio Bertelli, President and CEO of the Prada Group, is confident about the future.
“We are pleased that our strategy continues to outperform the market at both Prada and Miu Miu,” he says. And while the current environment is “challenging for the entire luxury value chain”, “we remain committed to our plan of strategic investment in retail, technology and industrial capabilities to support the long-term, sustainable growth of our group and our partners.” he concludes.
Read also > Lyst ranking: affordable luxury gains in popularity
Featured Photos: © Miu Miu
