Tiffany & Co. achieved “remarkable results” in its first year owned by LVMH, the luxury conglomerate said in its latest financial results.
The retailer “saw record performance in terms of revenue, profits, and cash flow,” it said.
LVMH officially took over the company on Jan. 7, 2021.
In the conference call following the release of the financial results, LVMH chair and CEO Bernard Arnault boasted that his company has been able to achieve a “turnaround” for the fabled brand.
“[The] luxury industry grew remarkably all the way up to 2019,” he said, according to a SeekingAlpha transcript. “But during these years, which was a period of growth, Tiffany stagnated. Both profit and revenue were flat. So we came at an opportune time.
“People said you’re paying a lot for that company, but I think it was not expensive at all. In fact, [chief financial offer Jean-Jacques] Guiony was able to pay it off very quickly. But it wasn’t such an expensive acquisition, considering and looking at the performance.”
He continued that, under previous ownership, Tiffany’s “shops lacked momentum, maybe some of them had to be redesigned, and business was sluggish…. We were able to turn it around and bring it up to extremely high performance.… We are very confident as to the future of Tiffany.”
He noted that the strong performances came in spite of the company’s New York City flagship being closed for renovations.
He said that Beyoncé’s rendition of “Moon River,” the theme from the 1961 movie Breakfast at Tiffany’s, which was featured in the retailer’s ads this year, caused people to “weep.”
As for as future acquisitions, Arnault said, “We’re in no hurry. I’ve been making acquisitions for the past 40 years. People tell us we’re making many acquisitions. We only have one every so often.”
(Photo courtesy of Tiffany & Co.)
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