Strong wine and spirits performance boosts LVMH

By Lisa Riley

Published: 10 October, 2019

Strong quarterly growth in LVMH’s wine and spirits division has helped push the luxury goods group’s third quarter revenues to €13.3bn.

The company’s wine and spirits division posted 8% growth to €1.4bn driven by a good performance in China and steady demand in the US, said the owner of Moët & Chandon, Dior and Bulgari.

Champagne volumes were down slightly, but Hennessy cognac volumes increased 10%.

The overall strong performance across wine and spirits helped the group post double-digit revenue growth, with overall sales up 11% year-on-year on an organic basis to €13.3bn, as the world's largest luxury group shrugged off the global trade war.

The performance is ahead of the 8.8% growth and €12.7bn sales expected by analysts.

LVMH said Europe and the US made "good progress" during the three months, while Asia also performed well "despite a difficult context in Hong Kong", as political tension between its citizens and China reaching new highs.

“In a growth environment since the beginning of the year, albeit marked by an uncertain geopolitical context, LVMH will continue to be vigilant.

“The Group will pursue its strategy focused on innovation and targeted geographic expansion in the most promising markets. LVMH will rely on the power of its brands and the talent of its teams to further extend its global leadership in the luxury market in 2019.”

Revenue at LVMH's fashion and leather goods division, the group’s largest division, were up 19%, while, perfumes and cosmetics were up 7% and watches and jewellery up 5%.

Asia, excluding Japan, is LVMH's biggest market and accounts for a third of the group's sales, compared to almost a quarter for the US, and just under a fifth for Europe (excluding France).

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