British fashion brand Burberry’s first quarter turnover grew 3 % mainly thanks to a Chinese sales surge. It launched a new campaign on WeChat there, which helped boost its online sales.
Strong online Chinese growth
British Burberry’s first quarter turnover reached 478 million pounds (535 million euro), 3 % more than last year. It is even a 4 % like-for-like turnover increase, but exchange rate fluctuations had a negative effect on the results. This means Marco Gobbetti, who took charge of the company earlier this month, is off to a good start.
The company mainly performed well in China: it launched a new online campaign on the popular WeChat app, which helped double its online sales compared to last year’s first quarter. Burberry’s total Chinese turnover growth reached 5 %. It also performed decently in the United Kingdom, but it also struggled in several European countries, like Italy. North and South American sales also slumped slightly.
“We are pleased with our performance in the first quarter, while mindful of the work still to do. This is a time of great change for Burberry and the wider luxury industry. I look forward to building on the foundations Christopher (the former CEO) and the team have put in place and creating new energy to drive growth.”
