Hermès Q4 Sales Up 26% as Luxury Brand Caps ‘Particularly Robust’ Year

Hermès is seeing no slowdown in sales of luxury products.

The luxury brand said in a Friday (Feb. 17) earnings release that it had a “particularly robust” 2022 in which its sales were up 26% in the fourth quarter and 29% for the full year.

“In 2022, Hermès had an exceptional year thanks notably to the good performance of its international markets,” Hermès Executive Chairman Axel Dumas said in the release. “This success reinforces our approach as an artisanal and highly integrated company, mainly in France: a design house that offers objects conceived to be functional, with an assertive style and uncompromising quality.”

This news comes on the heels of recent reports from the firm’s competitors in the luxury space.

LVMH said Jan. 26 that it had a record year in 2022 and remained “confident but vigilant” about luxury demand in 2023. The firm said its revenue was up 23% in 2022 with sales in Europe, the United States and Japan up sharply.

Giving the firm’s outlook for 2023, LVMH Chairman and CEO Bernard Arnault said at the time that the company is confident it can maintain that growth rate while remaining vigilant in the face of global uncertainties.

Kering, on the other hand, reported Feb. 15 that it saw a year-over-year decline in sales of 7% on a comparable basis during the fourth quarter although its full-year revenue for 2022 was up 9%.

The global luxury group attributed its fourth-quarter drop to the COVID-related restrictions that were still in place in China.

Hermès said in its earnings release that it saw growth across Asia, the Americas and Europe driven by a recovery in travel retail, its growing exclusive distribution network and an upward trend in online sales.

It also saw double-digit growth in each of its business lines, including leather goods and saddlery, ready-to-wear and accessories, silk and textiles, perfume and beauty, watches, and other — a category that includes jewelry and housewares, according to the release.

Hermès also added 2,100 new hires, bringing its total workforce to 19,700, per the release.

Looking ahead, Hermès said in the release that it “confirms an ambitious goal” for revenue growth in 2023 despite the world’s economic, geopolitical and monetary uncertainties.

“The group has moved into 2023 with confidence, thanks to the highly integrated artisanal model, the balanced distribution network, the creativity of collections and the loyalty of clients,” Hermès said in the release.